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THE MYTH OF THE DEMOCRATS’ GERONTOCRACY PROBLEM  
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Robert Kuttner
November 11, 2025
The American Prospect
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_ The Democrats’ problem is not age. It’s corporate and centrist
Democrats of all ages. _

Sen. Bernie Sanders raises his fist as he walks up to the podium
before speaking during a stop on the “Fighting Oligarchy” tour at
the McAllen Performing Arts Center, June, 20, 2025, in McAllen,
Texas., Joel Martinez/The Monitor via AP

 

How many pieces and op-eds have you read decrying the Democrats’
“gerontocracy,” as if a new generation of Democrats would sweep
out the cobwebs? We need more young leaders like Zohran Mamdani (34),
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (36), and Graham Platner (41), right?

Yes, we surely do. But how about Bernie Sanders (84) and Elizabeth
Warren (76)? How about Nancy Pelosi, who has just announced her
retirement and who was one of the most effective House Speakers ever
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into her seventies? What distinguishes Mamdani, AOC, and Platner is
not just their youth but the fact that they are compelling progressive
populists.

Conversely, how about House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a spry
55, who is so in thrall to the party’s big donors that he took until
the weekend before last Tuesday’s election to give Mamdani a tepid
endorsement? For that matter, how about Chuck Schumer (74), who never
managed to endorse Mamdani? Schumer, who was long known as the
“senator from Wall Street,” was no different at age 54 than he is
at 74.

Take two current cases of youth challenging age, each instructive in
complementary ways: Seth Moulton vs. Ed Markey and Graham Platner vs.
Janet Mills.

In Massachusetts, Markey, a great progressive senator, wants one more
term. At 79, he is five years younger than our beloved Bernie, who did
more to rally the enthusiasm of young people than any other Democrat,
until AOC and Mamdani. But I digress.

Markey is being challenged by Rep. Moulton, who is 47. I’ve listened
to both of them lately. Markey is at least as sharp as Moulton, and a
lot more principled. If Moulton fails to defeat Markey in the
Democratic primary, it will be because Moulton is widely perceived as
opportunist.

Last year, Moulton, a former Marine, was looking to carve out some
space in the cultural center, so he criticized trans athletes. In an
interview with _The New York Times_
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shortly after Kamala Harris’s defeat, Moulton said, “Democrats
spend way too much time trying not to offend anyone rather than being
brutally honest about the challenges many Americans face. I have two
little girls. I don’t want them getting run over on a playing field
by a male or formerly male athlete, but as a Democrat, I’m supposed
to be afraid to say that.”

If you think this was a spontaneous comment rather than a carefully
considered jab at progressive Democrats, I have a bridge to sell you.
The backlash was immediate. His campaign manager resigned. LGBT groups
expressed outrage.

For a time, Moulton held his ground. He exchanged barbs with
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, who is a lesbian. In a follow-up
interview
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a week later, Moulton said, “I’ve never had more people, parents
and, by the way, a lot of L.G.B.T.Q. community members, reach out to
me and say, ‘Thank you for saying this.’ Some of them are just
speaking authentically as parents. Some of them believe the trans
movement has gone too far. It is imperiling the progress we’ve
made.”

In October, at the No Kings rally on Boston Common, where Markey had a
trans flag draped across his shoulders, Moulton was booed. And once he
decided to challenge Markey in a deep-blue state that supports trans
rights, Moulton walked it all back. In a groveling apology last week
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Moulton said, “I understand that some people were hurt by how I
framed my comments in the past, and I take that seriously and have
listened to their feedback … I’ve listened, I’ve learned, and I
understand why those words hurt people. I take responsibility for
that.” Moulton says he now supports the Transgender Bill of Rights.

In fact, the issue of trans athletes is a tricky one, with different
sports bodies using different criteria. Had he stuck to his guns or
fine-tuned his views, Moulton might have won some grudging support.
But he lacked the courage of his shifting convictions. The trans
community still doesn’t trust him. And others just see the
opportunism.

There is also the case of Moulton’s expediently shifting views on
Israel. One disgusted leader of Boston’s Jewish community told me,
“Moulton was happy to take money from pro-Israel PACs until the
issue of Israel became radioactive. Then he became a critic.”

In mid-October, just after he announced his challenge to Markey,
Moulton put out a statement saying that he was returning all of his
donations from AIPAC, the coordinating group for the Israel lobby. In
2023 and 2024, Moulton received a total of $42,850 from AIPAC, which
was the top contributor to his campaign committee.

In a statement to _The Harvard Crimson_
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Moulton said he has “serious concerns about steadfast support for
the Netanyahu government … I have always believed the people of
Israel deserve safety and peace. That being said, I have disagreed
publicly with AIPAC on a number of issues over the years.”

Markey has never taken money from AIPAC and has been a forceful critic
of Israel’s actions in Gaza and the West Bank. Last July, Markey
voted for both of Bernie Sanders’s resolutions to block arms sales
to Israel.

And just yesterday, trying to run to Markey’s left, Moulton
challenged Markey to vote to oust Chuck Schumer. Moulton said in a
post on X [[link removed]],
“If @ChuckSchumer were an effective leader, he would have united his
caucus to vote ‘No’ tonight and hold the line on healthcare. Maybe
now @EdMarkey will finally join me in pledging not to vote for
Schumer?”

If a principled progressive half Markey’s age were challenging the
veteran senator, it would be a tougher call. Given that the challenger
is Seth Moulton, age could well beat beauty.

THE MAINE SENATE DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY CONTEST for the privilege of
running against faux-moderate incumbent Republican Susan Collins
raises different questions. The most important thing that
distinguishes Graham Platner from the other leading Democratic
contender, Gov. Janet Mills, is not his age but his ideology and base
of support.

Platner, who combines a working-class cultural appeal with
progressive-populist positions on key issues, has broad support and
momentum. His youth helps, but his politics help a lot more. Mills is
running as a competent moderate liberal, the sort of Democratic
centrist loved by Chuck Schumer, who recruited her to run and promised
her financial support from his leadership PAC.

But Platner seems primed to blow Mills away, and then to defeat
Collins. He has won key labor endorsements
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including the UAW, the nurses, the professional and technical
engineers, and the Machinists
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the Bath Iron Works.

One labor leader who knows Maine well told me, “The Maine Democratic
Party has two bases: Portland hipsters and blue-collar workers.
Platner has both.”

Mills, at 77, is only a year older than Elizabeth Warren. Platner is
likely to beat her not because of the age issue but because his
powerful themes resonate with voters and deprive Mills of her base.

In sum, the “youth challenging age” narrative is a part of the
story, but it’s far from the most important part. The Democratic
Party surely needs more younger leaders. What it really needs is more
compelling progressives—like millennial Graham Platner and baby
boomer Ed Markey.

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Robert Kuttner is co-founder and co-editor of The American Prospect,
and professor at Brandeis University’s Heller School.

 

* Age and Politics; Democrats and Progressive Candidates; Ed Markey;
Graham Platner;
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