Member-only story
Where Have All the Democratic Kingmakers Gone?
Politics, like nature, abhors a vacuum.
Since their crushing defeat in November’s election, the Democratic Party has been adrift, searching for direction and a figure to rally around. The absence of a clear leader has left Democrats questioning who can guide them from the depths of political despair.
Gone are the days when party kingmakers like Ted Kennedy, Tip O’Neill, or even the Clintons could wield influence and anoint rising stars.
Not even former President Barack Obama seems to wield outside influence in the party these days. Local activists, social media influencers, and grassroots movements have filled the leadership vacuum, yet none have emerged as a singular unifying force.
Former President Joe Biden faces dreadful approval ratings and widespread skepticism about his ability to lead a demoralized party. Vice President Kamala Harris, once viewed as a natural successor, failed miserably to lead Democrats to victory. Meanwhile, progressive firebrands like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders have energized the left wing but face resistance from centrist factions wary of alienating moderate voters.
Some in the media view the lack of current Democratic Party leadership as a good thing.
“A Democratic Party Cage Match Is Coming. It’s Going to Be Great,” claimed Ross Barkan for New York magazine last week. “For the first time in two decades, it is impossible to predict who the next Democratic nominee for president might be.”
“Three straight election cycles produced three flawed nominees who were firmly backed by their predecessors,” recalled Barkan. “Hillary Clinton was Barack Obama’s preferred successor, and led in just about every single poll over her theoretical and literal competition. Joe Biden seized the nomination four years later, thanks in part to Obama’s 11th-hour intervention to force several competitive center-left candidates, including Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar, out of the primary ahead of Super Tuesday. In 2024, following Biden’s implosion, Kamala Harris became the first Democratic nominee in more than a half-century to achieve that status without winning a vote in any of the primaries.”
