La Gringa and the Democratic Party's Future

https://erichensal.substack.com/p/la-gringa-and-the-democratic-partys?r=a1vrs

The off-year elections are going well for Democrats in state elections. New Jersey’s governor and a sweep of state offices and the assembly in Virginia—these are solid wins, but not far from the usual electoral reaction against the President’s party. And we had many special elections that flipped seats, also good, but special elections are—well, weird. Such campaigns are simple turnout pushes because most voters have no idea the election is happening. This favors a party out of the White House because these are the engaged voters, worried about getting back into office, who do pay attention. Overall, so far so good for Democrats. But, if we are honest, Democrats are as much relieved by not screwing up winnable elections as happy in flipping any new seats.

…and then Miami

Here something different happened. Eileen Higgins wins the mayor’s race in Miami: the first Democratic and non-Latino candidate since Steve Clark in 1993 (fun fact: Clark was the first non-Latino mayor since 1973). And, obviously, the first woman ever elected Miami’s mayor. How did this happen?

Well, first she outspent the hell out of her opponent on television —19 to 1—thanks to national grassroots money. Republicans were caught napping, counting on Cuban support and a broader rightward shift among Latino voters, so they did not raise and spend enough. But money alone doesn’t explain this; plenty of well-funded campaigns fall apart on Election Day. Even a solid Democratic ground game, by all reports excellent in Miami, does not always prevail. Higgins had something else working for her—and her campaign offers a lesson every Democrat could benefit from if they would simply follow it.

La Gringa

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