DNC: Dollars ‘N Cents
The Democrats’ loss in November was devastating and certainly unexpected. Activists and party leaders immediately began debating what went wrong and the path forward.
There are no answers yet, at least officially. No one has written up a post-mortem similar to the Republican National Committee’s “Growth and Opportunity” report published after Mitt Romney’s defeat. For now, the party will ride the wave of anti-Trump fervor that has caught hold amongst millions of Democrats, Independents, and even some Republicans.
Against this backdrop, the party is about to pick a new Chair when the 447 members of the Democratic National Committee, a group largely made up of state-party leaders and activists, meet this weekend to vote.
Some see the race as a continuation of the party’s spirited 2016 primary contest. That said, most of the candidates have gone out of their way to promote their progressive credentials, and expressed a desire for the party to move to the left.
What’s been missing from the discussion concerning DNC leadership, however, is that the organization has historically not been the center of debates about ideology nor determined the direction of the party. The role of the DNC Chair has largely been to raise money and invest in party-building and infrastructure. Organizing doesn’t pay for itself.
A partial look at previous national party leaders is instructive: Former Gov. Howard Dean’s 50-state strategy helped boost state parties, attracting donations of all sizes to the cause of having a party with a nationwide presence and a national database of voters. Gov. Terry McAuliffe was an extraordinary leader and fundraiser and is credited with rebuilding and modernizing the DNC’s permanent headquarters (full disclosure: I also served at the DNC under both Dean and McAuliffe). Going further back, the job has been held by Democratic power brokers like Robert Strauss, who helped turn around the finances of an organization saddled with debt following losses at the presidential level in 1968 and 1972.
Some see fundraising as a dirty business but it’s an even more important skill now that the party has to compete for the attention of donors who are being courted by an expanding number of energized Democratically-aligned but external groups — and without an ally in the White House. The frontrunners in the current race for Chair all face questions on this front.
Rep. Keith Ellison, endorsed by Senator Bernie Sanders and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, is an admired progressive leader. Ellison has raised a good amount for his campaign for Chair, a promising development. But once in office he will need to collect millions before the midterm elections. It is also unclear if he has experience gathering funds from a broad, cross-section of the moneyed constituencies that has, to this point, been necessary to mount a successful national finance strategy. This means he may have to tap new sources.
Ellison has indicated he would work hard to gain access to Senator Sanders’ vaunted email fundraising list that allowed the Vermonter to raise unprecedented sums during the presidential primary, in excess of $200 million from nearly 3 million donors. But Jeff Weaver, Sanders’ former campaign manager, recently said they would not be handing the list over to the DNC.
Even if they did, it’s unclear whether it would hold much value absent Sanders himself making direct appeals to his supporters, even in a fierce anti-Trump environment.
Tom Perez, the former Obama Labor Secretary, has been endorsed by former Vice President Joe Biden, former Attorney General Eric Holder, and other establishment Democrats. He is a respected leader with strong links to organized labor. But, he has very limited experience collecting campaign cash, let alone on a national level. However, if seasoned fundraisers in the Obama and Clinton orbits commit to helping Perez succeed, his strategy perhaps becomes clearer.
The third major contender, South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, a rising Democratic star endorsed by former DNC Chairs David Wilhelm, Ed Rendell, Steve Grossman, Joe Andrew and Howard Dean, has recently gained momentum. Buttigieg does not have national fundraising experience but the support from numerous past party chiefs may allay some concerns.
To be sure, these realities do not mean any of the various candidates cannot become standout fundraisers, hire top-notch staff or oversee an expanded small-dollar program that makes up for lost ground. It does mean that despite the more progressive slant of the party since November, the practice of traditional party fundraising — something many Democratic activists reject — will need to continue. All those voting for the next head of the DNC should keep that in mind.
