Advice for Sussex Dems from Former 14th RD Chair Claire Snyder-Hall
When you take on a leadership role in an organization, you generally become attached to it, hoping for its continued success, even after you step down. That is how I feel about the Sussex County Democrats, having served as chair of the 14RD Committee for 4 years, and sitting on the County executive committee because of that role.
Consequently, I’ve been asking myself these questions: Democrats had a registration advantage in Sussex County in 2014 (49,865 v. 49,615) and only a slight disadvantage in 2016 (57,522 v. 59,907), so why can’t Democrats get elected in Sussex? Why did every single Democrat lose in 2014 and 2016, except for the one Trump supporters love? Is the County just hopeless, best written off as a lost cause?
Click through to clairesnyderhall.com for the rest.
She’s right! Party insiders hold on to these committee jobs forever and freeze out folks who want to, or should, get involved. Instead, they are alienated and the party apparatus never grows. Just the same old folks with no turnover or new ideas.
Interesting. A dismissal of the theory that less than exciting candidates did not motivate Dems to the polls, but an endorsement of a theory that exciting local events would motivate Dems to participate.
There’s something not quite right there.
But while I do think that the local party apparatus has some refocusing work to do — not the least of which is getting a platform done and refocusing on a mission — one of the key things that has to be considered is that Democrats are not interchangable. And nor should they. A Democrat who can run in Newark is going to be different than a Democrat from Sussex. Democrats from there have demonstrated that over and over again. Candidates who run there need to thread that particular needle and if you are a progressive Dem, that is probably a very big task.
I agree with Cassandra. The D candidates in Sussex have been very progressive. Mrs. Snyder-Hall included. I think the biggest problem is that some candidates have not truly reflected the districts, but have reflected a particular ideology instead. That’s a problem, even if I agree with their ideology.
Oh my. I’m going to put those comments in a time capsule and write “Why Democrats always lose” on the outside of it.
“There’s something not quite right” in Cassandra’s analysis because CSH isn’t dismissing “the theory that less than exciting candidates did not motivate Dems to the polls” she is dismissing the premise that they were less than an exciting candidate. But that is a side point. The main point is unavoidable, but somehow Cassandra avoids it.
It isn’t a “theory” that exciting local events would motivate Dems to participate, it is an established fact based on her first-hand experience. That is a fact actively ignored by the SC Dem leadership, and now actively ignored by the august commenters on this blog.
By your own theory, exciting candidates would clean up at the polls. Which doesn’t square with Pete Schwartzkopf, now does it? History is filled with less than exciting candidates who have figured out how to motivate people to vote for them. And figuring out how to get people to vote for you is job 1, 2 and 3 for any candidate running.
Whether the Sussex candidates were exciting or not isn’t material — what is material is that they couldn’t get enough of their voters out to win.
Here we are in Strawman City again Ladies and Gentlemen, and Cassandra is the mother fucking mayor.
Are you unable to dispute her reasoning, so you pretend that it’s a strawman argument?
Another problem is that many of the recent Democrat Sussex candidates are folks who have moved in from DC or Maryland in last few years. Not a lot of folks stepping up with deep roots in the local schools, local community, etc. Just some food for thought..
I don’t think it was simply a case of turnout. There are two characteristics of Sussex County that are essential to comprehending the outcomes.
The first is that Sussex County is fairly conservative, even among Democrats. Sure there are very visible progressives, which gives the impression that the area is a hot bed of progressivism but really it’s just not true. We joke about Western Sussex and Eastern Sussex, but even Eastern Sussex is pretty conservative. I have gay friends in Sussex County who voted for Trump. Yeah, go figure. Certainly doesn’t seem like the demographic Trump was courting and it does seem like the LBGT community should be a bit more progressive. And yeah I know the LBGT community is not monolithic. Maybe it’s something in the water here.
The second is that in Sussex County relationships count for more than party. So people who know and like folks like Ernie Lopez, vote for Ernie, even if they are Democrats. Ditto Pete. I know plenty of Republicans who voted for Pete, because they know him and like him. If you are a “come here” (like me) you haven’t been around long enough to be involved in the local area and create those relationships which are key to getting elected.
When CSH was running, she did a great job of going door to door trying to connect to voters. I wished her well, but told her she had a tough row to hoe because Lopez was (and is) such a presence in the community. She was a little dismissive of that thought, but people like Pete and Ernie seem to be everywhere, cutting ribbons, digging dirt, kissing babies, and in general being visible. And yeah, I know that’s not governing, but people like to see their overloads occasionally.
When I first moved here, I was headed to the Buttery to meet friends. I walked up the steps just behind a couple of folks. Guy holds the door open for me and I walk in, thanking him. It was Markell. I’ve never been anywhere where I even saw the governor, much less have him hold the door for me. That made an impression on me. It mattered.
FYI Pete and Ernie are not from here. Neither are some of the Republican candidates that have run and won in Sussex.
The idea that you have to be from here to win is no longer valid. Being habitually involved in the community through various avenues such as being on boards of community organizations, etc, is what sells in Sussex.
What is truly frustrating about the likes of someone like Pete is that he won’t cast a progressive vote even if it costs him nothing when it comes to Republican voters (which Pete values very much). Pete probably doesn’t even know what the party platform looks like. But he sure acts like he did progressives a favor by placing a minimum wage bill in committees and slow walking it then later on taking credit for it.
The registration analysis really ignores how heavily the non affiliated voters break conservative.
It also doesn’t help that the Sussex Dems at every level below Mitch are either incompetent or too busy infighting amongst themselves to make any real organizing effort
Infighting and clubiness are both symptoms of the same disease which CSH diagnoses very well.
As a current (and hope to continue) RD Chair in NCC, the one thing that annoys the crap out of me are the chairs (insiders?) who refuse to bring in new people. I’m also a Young Dem (at least technically for 2 more years) and so I see a state party that leaves my generation high and dry when we bust our butts for it (either volunteering or actually getting paid); I watch these other chairs, who were all amazing political hacks (I say that lovingly not negatively), who were the kings (mostly) and queens of the game decades ago–but they are using decades-old methods to elect candidates and aren’t letting a new generation come in and bring the party forward…
But when they are so adamant on not letting new people in, it frustrates me. I have meetings set up with folks from my district who have reached out to others (some other committee Chairs who do get it, and some of the NCC Exec Committee, who I think all get it, honestly…) and I invite them all to our next meeting.
People (anecdotally) are pissed at the National election results and they want to get involved so it doesn’t happen 1.) again and 2.) closer to home. Now I could be a Bitter Betty and say “where the heck were you 6 months ago?” (And trust me there are days I say that to myself) or I can be the RD chair that says, meet me at the local coffee shop and we’ll talk about how you can make a difference locally.
Not enough RD chairs are doing this. (I’m not the only one, but there still aren’t enough.)
Mitch is, was and ever ill be the problem. Nothing more dangerous than a vindictive venomous guy that doesn’t know his ass from 3rd base.
FYI Pete and Ernie are not from here. Neither are some of the Republican candidates that have run and won in Sussex.
Pete was a lifeguard in Rehoboth Beach when he was a kid, he’s been in Delaware since the 70s at least. He may not be from Sussex, but he’s been in Sussex a long time.
What is truly frustrating about the likes of someone like Pete is that he won’t cast a progressive vote even if it costs him nothing when it comes to Republican voters (which Pete values very much).
Pete has spearheaded and fought for every LGBTQ bill that has seen the light of day in the General Assembly.
Nothing more dangerous than a vindictive venomous guy that doesn’t know his ass from 3rd base.
Vindictive venomous guy, heal thyself.
Co-signing LG here.