Mediaboss Marketing

FAIRVIEW PARK -- In 1989, the national Democratic Party was coming off three straight blowout presidential election losses. In response, the Progressive Policy Institute published a detailed paper that identified the Partys central problem its leaders practiced the politics of evasion.

In doing so, they refused to acknowledge any problems with the partys appeal while relying on mythical cures like mobilizing imaginary non-voters or advocating for even more liberal positions.

Today, Ohio Democrats face a situation that is even more dire than the one faced by national Democrats in 1989.

Since 2014, only one person listed on the statewide ballot as a Democrat has won. In the other 13 statewide races, the Republican candidate won, and often by significant margins. Down-ballot, Democrats have fared no better as Republican supermajorities dominate the General Assembly.

This decade of cascading losses must force Ohio Democrats to face the stark reality: That most Ohioans have come to see the party as unresponsive to their economic needs, hostile to their cultural mores, and indifferent to the rise of crime in their communities.

But too many Democratic leaders refuse to acknowledge that reality.

Instead, they rely on trite slogans of avoidance like Ohio is not a red state, it is a gerrymandered state, Democrats win if more people vote, and Democrats will win if they act like Democrats. In short, too many Ohio Democrats today are practicing the same politics of evasion that national Democrats practiced in 1989.

Rick Raley is political director of the Cuyahoga County Young Democrats, treasurer of the Fairview Park Democratic Club, and a member of the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party Central Committee.

Data shows that Ohio Democrats consistently lose statewide elections because they have lost the support of middle-class Ohioans and lost ground with moderate voters.

Since 2016, statewide Democrats have only averaged 44% support from voters with yearly incomes between $50,000 and $100,000. And, losing statewide candidates in that timeframe have only averaged 54% support from moderate voters, which is far short of the 60% threshold that Ohio Democrats need to win to be competitive.

Ohio Democrats cannot stick their heads in the sand when confronted with this data. Increased turnout will not save the party. After all, the 2020 election featured the highest turnout in decades, and President Biden still lost by eight points.

Creating a more liberal electorate is a fantasy, too. Since 2000, the Ohio electorate has been remarkably consistent with only about 20% of voters identifying as liberal. The only thing that Ohio Democrats can do to achieve a governing majority is to increase their support among moderate and middle-class voters.

By relying on cliched myths and failing to appeal to the voters who decide elections, Ohio Democrats have ceded the state to extremist Republican ideas like massive giveaways to the powerful, a gun in every classroom, and a bureaucrat in every doctors office.

Now is the time for Ohio Democrats to correct course by reaching out to moderate and middle-class Ohioans who recoil from those ideas. They must communicate that the Partys policies are laser-focused on rewarding those who work hard and play by the rules. They must meet voters where they are while remaining dedicated to non-discrimination.

And, they must commit to fighting both the crime in our streets and the underlying causes of that crime.

Today, Ohio Democrats face a choice: Do they want to sit in an echo chamber as the state descends further into right-wing extremism or do they want to do what it takes to win a governing majority? The choice must be easy because too much is at stake for Ohio Democrats to remain sidelined.

When national Democrats cast aside the politics of evasion in 1992, the Party won its first presidential election in 16 years and President Clinton was the first Democratic president re-elected in 50 years. Doing the same thing here in Ohio in 2022 will produce the durable governing majority that Ohio Democrats need to make the state a place of equal opportunity for all, not special privilege for a few.

Rick Raley is political director of the Cuyahoga County Young Democrats, treasurer of the Fairview Park Democratic Club, and a member of the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party Central Committee.

Have something to say about this topic?

* Send a letter to the editor, which will be considered for print publication.

* Email general questions about our editorial board or comments or corrections on this opinion column to Elizabeth Sullivan, director of opinion, at esullivan@cleveland.com.

Follow this link:
Ohio Democrats need to abandon the politics of evasion if they expect to win elections : Rick Raley - cleveland.com