How Worried Should You Be About the DNC?

The answer depends on which election you're worried about.

In my overly long political career, the Democratic National Committee has always been a bit of a mess. Running an umbrella organization with too many responsibilities and not enough power is never easy. Its leadership serves at the pleasure of the more than 400 DNC members, including state and local chairs, activists, and the people in big hats and buttons you see dancing at the convention every four years.

There is always some level of worry about whether the DNC is up to the task, but I’ve never seen it as bad as it is right now.

The concern about Ken Martin’s stewardship went from bubbling under the surface among activists, operatives, and electeds to a roiling online conversation after Martin’s viral interview with my Pod Save America cohost Jon Favreau.

Jon and Martin went back and forth over two major sources of concern. The first is the DNC’s refusal to release the autopsy of the 2024 election. When Martin ran for chair, he promised to conduct and publicly release a report on what happened in 2024. He even criticized the previous DNC leadership for not releasing an autopsy after 2016. At some point last year, after the report was reportedly completed, Martin changed his mind and decided not to release it. You can listen to his explanation in the interview to see if it’s compelling. Many others and I did not.

The second issue is the DNC’s fundraising. As CNN reported last month:

An already massive gap between Republican National Committee and Democratic National Committee finances widened in February, according to new reports filed with the Federal Election Commission.

The RNC out-raised the DNC in February, $18.5 million to $10.3 million. And entering March, the RNC reported nearly seven times as much cash on hand, $109 million to $15.9 million.

The DNC has more outstanding debt, $17.4 million, than cash on hand, keyed to a $15 million loan the committee took out last October.

The DNC has done pretty well with grassroots fundraising, which is great. But many of the major donors who typically fund the DNC have refused to give. Some have specific complaints about Martin; many others simply don’t trust the DNC after the 2024 election. Either way, Martin has struggled to match the Republican fundraising machine. He has also spent a lot of money early, hence the low cash on hand. I generally agree that early investments are better than hoarding money to the end, but a 7-to-1 cash disadvantage is suboptimal to say the least.

Concerns with Martin’s leadership have reached the point that, according to The Bulwark’s Lauren Egan:

Some DNC members have privately discussed trying to force Martin out of the job, according to three people familiar with these conversations. The idea was put on hold after members failed to identify an alternative candidate willing to step into the role.

I have heard from a shocking number of people about the DNC. I initially resisted writing about this because I thought Jon’s interview spoke for itself, but with the midterms less than six months away, people are quite concerned that a poorly run DNC low on cash could cost the party in November.

Here’s the thing, though: the midterms aren’t actually what you should be worried about. The DNC plays almost no role there. The real stakes are 2028 — and on that front, the situation is worse than people realize.

Let me explain.