Finding the Signal and Path Forward

Everyone's got their hot take on the election. Instead of rushing mine out, I wanted to sit with it, hear from others, and shape my understanding with useful takeaways. To find the signal in the noise.

The election was a wake-up call for Democrats. It reminded us that voters want leaders who understand their struggles, deliver solutions on the issues that matter most—economic opportunity, security, and restoring trust in government—and embody credibility and authenticity.

The good news is that there’s a clear opportunity for Democrats to build a movement that reflects the values of all Americans and delivers a future they can believe in—not just in 2026 & 2028 but for the long term. But only if we embrace the right lessons.

What the Election Taught Us

The simple reality is this: Trump won fair and square. Republicans took the Senate and the House, giving them a trifecta to advance an agenda that could fundamentally reshape America. Trump is already positioning himself to bring in unqualified, dangerous allies to help execute this vision, which looks increasingly like the extremist playbook outlined in Project 2025.

But the electorate didn’t embrace Project 2025 or fascism or Trump’s grotesque character nor did they wholesale reject Democrats. Voters simply chose who they believed would better address their immediate concerns—prioritizing their self-interest the same way voters have since the founding of our republic.

Take the states where voters supported abortion protections while also voting for Trump. These voters chose protecting abortion rights at the state level and then prioritized other pressing issues—like the economy, inflation, and border security—when voting federally. This duality reflects a fundamental gap Democrats need to bridge: we must remain focused on the issues voters care about most.

It would be a colossal mistake to simply wait for Trump’s policies to backfire or rely on the anti-incumbent pendulum to swing back in 2026 and 2028. If Democrats want to win back trust, we need to return to the party that credibly and consistently delivers on the core issues that matter most to Americans.

What Voters Want

I’ve been thinking a lot about what matters to all Americans—regardless of party; regardless of age, gender, or race; regardless of education or income and all the other standard groupings pollsters and political consultants use to divide up Americans.

I keep coming back to some of the consistent things that I heard in my own 2022 campaign listening to folks all throughout the rural and suburban communities of Northern New York. I see them in the 2024 results. I feel them as a voter myself.

At the heart of this election—and every election—are the shared priorities of the American people:

1. Economic Opportunity
   The American Dream feels increasingly out of reach. Working families want leaders who understand their struggles and deliver relief on kitchen table issues like wages, taxes, housing, childcare, and healthcare. Democrats must demonstrate that we are the party fighting to restore universal economic opportunity and help working families get ahead.

2. Security for All
   The fundamental responsibility of government is to keep its citizens safe. It is a nonnegotiable principle in our social contract with those we elect and the institutions we fund with our tax dollars. Whether it’s community safety, border security, national security, or protecting women and kids, Americans want government (at every level) to prioritize their safety and security. Security issues carry such significant weight for voters that they spill over to other issues—because if you fail to prioritize this fundamental responsibility why should voters trust you with any other area of governance? Democrats must reclaim the mantle of security for all.

3. Restoring Trust in Government
   Elected officials work for us, but it sure doesn’t feel that way. Elites in both parties who have run this country for too long have failed to understand and respond to the needs of Americans. Career politicians have betrayed the public trust to enrich themselves and cling to power. Corporations, billionaires, and special interests hold politicians hostage for their benefit and drown out the voice of the American people. The system is broken. Democrats must champion bold reforms—like banning stock trading for members of Congress, implementing term limits, and removing corporate money from politics—to restore trust and demonstrate that we work for the people.

It’s pretty simple: People want to provide a better future for their kids, everyone wants to live in safety, and elected officials should work for us instead of themselves.

These are not conservative, moderate, or liberal interests. They are core American interests.

A hard truth is that Democrats have failed to maintain consistent, laser-like focus on these core interests—instead straying into divisive identity politics, prioritizing esoteric causes, fixating on Trump, and spending more time in echo chambers with celebrities instead of the frontlines of American life with working families. Whether these critiques are valid or not is irrelevant. Perception is reality and we’re long overdue for Democrats to take ownership and great care of their brand.

Democrats must build a movement rooted in these core American interests.

The Future of the Party

If Democrats want to win, we need leaders who embody authenticity and credibility on the issues that matter most to Americans. Let’s look to those exemplary candidates who bucked the national trend last week, winning in hard districts and outperforming the top of the Democratic ticket:

• Pat Ryan (Army combat veteran), Ruben Gallego (Marine combat veteran), Andy Kim and Elissa Slotkin (both former national security officials) bring built-in credibility on security, a core voter priority. Their backgrounds allow them to focus on solutions rather than proving their commitment to protecting American families—because they already have.

• Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, a small business owner and working parent, won in a rural district by speaking directly to the challenges facing working families and standing up to party elites. She offered this advice after her victory:

I hope that other normal people see me and decide they can run, too. There’s not one weird trick that’s going to fix the Democratic Party. It is going to take parents of young kids, people in rural communities, people in the trades running for office and being taken seriously.

To rebuild trust with the American people, Democrats need more candidates like these public servants who bring authenticity and credibility to the issues that matter. We need fewer career politicians and more veterans and cops, small business owners and labor leaders, teachers and farmers. We need a party that reflects America and is rooted in service, accountability, and results.

Beyond building a new face to the party, Democrats also need to clean up their own house. We can champion a reform agenda that truly restores power back to the people but this will also require us to call out abuses of power, corruption, and cronyism within the Democratic party. My home state of New York should be ground zero for these efforts.

A Warning

The greatest risk for Democrats isn’t whether we lean too liberal or too moderate—it’s falling into the trap of complacency or misreading the electorate entirely. Waiting for an anti-incumbent swing or continuing to define ourselves primarily in opposition to Trump will not build the trust we need to win and govern.

After Mitt Romney’s 2012 loss, Republicans released an autopsy calling for appealing to minorities, women, and younger voters; softening their rhetoric; and modernizing their image. Trump ignored it completely, instead tapping into voter frustrations with economic insecurity, cultural displacement, and distrust of institutions.

The lesson for Democrats is clear: strategies dictated by consultants or party elites won’t resonate unless they address the immediate concerns of voters. Misreading (or ignoring) voter priorities, relying on a superficial rebrand, or defining ourselves primarily in opposition to Trump will result in continued failure. We already risk losing the confidence of a coalition that placed faith in Democrats to protect America from its abuser in 2024, if we fail to act boldly and precisely we risk losing their confidence for good.

The steps we take now will define the future our party and our nation. Democrats must rise to this moment with courage and clarity. With credible leaders focused on core American interests, we can rebuild the trust of the American people and lead them toward a better future. It’s time to move beyond opposition and prove that we are the party of action, accountability, and results.

It’s time to restore faith in a party that stands for all Americans.

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