The 'No Democrats' Democrat Strategy That's More Popular Than Ever!
They're trying to win by losing - and they're failing at THAT, too.
Pop quiz: How does a Democrat win an election once people find out who they are?
Trick question: They don’t! Or at least, they seem to think they won’t. Democrats have become the only political party whose campaign strategy is convincing voters there isn't a Democrat running.
Yes, the hottest new strategy in the DNC is dropping out and letting someone else run instead. Joe Biden did it. (How’s that workin’ out?) Graham Platner did it. (Wie läuft das?) And now two other hapless Democrats, in Montana and Nebraska respectively, are adopting the strategy. Or trying to. They’re actually having some trouble withdrawing.
As it turns out, Democrats aren’t even winning at losing.
Democrat Alani Bankhead is running for dropping out of the Senate race in Montana, but it turns out, the law doesn’t really let him do that, according to the Secretary of State.
The Montana Secretary of State’s office tells Semafor that there’s no wiggle room if Democratic Senate candidate Alani Bankhead drops out of the race in the next two weeks.
“The Secretary took an oath to uphold the law, and Montana law plainly states that if a party’s candidate withdraws, that political party shall appoint a replacement. That’s the law, not a suggestion. We’re not interested in political games,” said a spokesperson for Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen, a Republican.
Obviously, he wants out so as not to split the liberal vote with Independent candidate Seth Bodnar against Republican Kurt Alme.
Bodnar’s pitch is pretty familiar these days among those trying to beat Republicans: he was in the military, he brags that’s he’s not a politician, and posts pics of himself with trucks and trees and sports. (Aside: you won’t believe me and they’ll deny it, but when Trump first ran and made a big point of not being a politician, Democrats attacked that as a dumb lack of qualifications for the job. That’s very funny to me.)
And it’s true, a lot of politicos try to appear very EveryMan-coded when running for office - I live in North Carolina, so believe me, I know. The reasons are a bit different, though. Republicans want the Republican base to see them that way. Democrats, on the other hand, want the Republican base to see them that way.
Oh wait, that’s not different.
Running away from the Democrat party is really the only way to code EveryMan anymore. It’s hard to convince voters you’re some God-fearing tough guy Dodge Ram owner when in fact you’re a progressive weirdo Chevy Colorado owner. Right, Talarico?
As Semafor pointed out, it’s happening in Nebraska, too. Only that one is WAAAY more of a mess. See, a Democrat candidate who lost the primary is suing to have the party name a replacement for the winner of that primary, Cindy Burbank. Because she dropped out. His argument is that Burbank was run by Democrats just so she could beat him and then drop out to clear the way for Dan Osborn’s independent run against Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts, the incumbent.
It is very hilarious. But it’s not one-offs anymore. This is obviously a trend, about which no media nor anyone in the Dem party will inquire too deeply regarding underlying causes.
That is: they aren’t going to ask why the best Democrat strategy is to not be a Democrat. And that’s because they know the answer. Most normal Americans aren’t down with the DNC’s radical, far-left, insane agenda. They tried it in 2024 and look who is President now. You would think that message would land with the party, but how can it when they are so befuddled by their celebrity wing and their The Bulwark hallelujah chorus slobbering all over every far-left principle they can get their greased palms on?
So they keep trying it. And in individual races where “Yes All Gender Is a Construct Anti-Israel Pro-Terror Abolish Guns” politics are, it turns out, not huge box office draws, well it’s clear what will work. You can’t sell Democrat. So change the brand name on the ticket!
And will that work? So far .. lol, nah. But it’s not inconceivable that radical wolves in Independent clothing will sneak to D.C. in a race or two. It’ll probably be a short-lived victory though, if not a pyrrhic one. Because when that independent proves wildly unpopular after opening their mouth on T.V. for a couple of years, it’ll be even tougher to sell a Democrat to voters you tricked the previous go-round. Don’t you think?