Back on April 8, 2020, Bernie Sanders suspended his presidential campaign, and Joe Biden became the official democratic candidate for president on August 18, 2020. Which was a major blow to progressives, who were snubbed during the convention by the democratic establishment. The movement was fractured between those who will reluctantly support Joe Biden, those like myself who will vote for Howie Hawkins, and those who won’t vote at all because they don’t see any other viable candidates. That being said the progressive movement can come back from this defeat. In order to do so we must understand what went wrong previously, and what we should change for next time. I will also suggest what we should look for in future candidates to lead our movement in the future. The first fatal mistake in the Bernie Sanders campaign is that Bernie Sanders comes off as soft to voters, and his aversion to running a negative campaign cost him dearly in this past election.
My former political science instructor and state senator for Schuylkill County once told the class how effective running a negative campaign can be during elections. He told the class that running a negative campaign is one of the most effective tools a candidate can use, and it’s almost always effective in motivating voters to vote against your opposition. This always stuck with me and is an important lesson for progressives to learn when running for office. Had Bernie Sanders spent more money on attack ads in key states it might have been more pressure than the Joe Biden campaign could handle. Donald Trump had beaten his fellow republican opposition in the primaries, and subsequently the 2016 presidential primary keeping his foot on the offensive, and mercilessly going after the unpopular Hillary Clinton in 2016. Famously Lyndon Johnson defeated Barry Goldwater by attacking his hawkish foreign policy. If a progressive candidate has any hope to winning the nomination during the next presidential primary they need to be as committed to defeating the centrists in the primary as they are committed to beating the Republican candidate in the general election.
Otherwise, they have no hope of winning the Democratic primary if they don’t campaign aggressively. Secondly, in order for a progressive to win the democratic nomination for president, they have to be bold and embrace controversy. Running as a democrat, no matter what your platform is the republicans will still call you a socialist so you might as well own it. Embracing controversy makes you stand out from other candidates, and makes it harder to attack you. This strategy is exactly how Donald Trump managed to dominate the Republican primary in 2016. If you absorb every attack leveled against you and hit back harder you’ll damage your opponent’s reputation more than your own. Unapologetically sharing your most controversial political opinions openly will galvanize your base of supporters, and attract media attention to you. The best advertising money can buy is free advertising when you get the media talking about you. Remember the more the media talks about you the more name recognition you foster. Fortunately for progressives, this is easy to do given America’s cultural aversion to socialism. So openly embracing socialism will already create media buzz from conservatives, and the older generations. You can lean into this further talking about the good accomplishments of many socialist republics, or talking about the socialist literature that inspires you.
Fidel Castro did good things for Cuba’s education system, housing, and the healthcare. If you want to you can even go as far as publicly advocate for lifting the embargo on Cuba as a sign of good will, and to make amends for past hostilities. Talk about your support for Antifa and BLM, and how you admire their courage for standing up for what’s right. Thirdly, taking a strong stance in favor of abortion rights will gain the ire of the religious right. Go on the public record, and say you support abortion rights without unapologetically. Take a firm stance, and don’t dance around the issue and the religious right will condemn your presidency. Which is a good thing, because they are are small minority that is loud enough to get you the media attention you need to win. They are also one of the least sympathetic groups of people in America, so you can’t have any better opposition to your presidency. If you’re well read then talk about the most controvesial books you’ve read. If you find yourself in an interview with a member of the media talk about your thoughts on The Communist Manifesto, The Motorcycle Diaries, or The Revolution Betrayed. Whatever you do as a candidate running for office stay true to who you are, and wear your politics on your sleeve. Embracing controversy only works if it is authentic controversy that comes naturally to you. No one likes a faker, especially among progressive voters. That will turn progressives against you faster than any controversial opinion you can have.
Third, it is particularly important for progressive candidates to garner endorsements. The right endorsements can help your presidential campaign gain legitimacy, spread your message to new demographics, and bolster support for your presidency. The right endorsements can accent your campaign, and grabs you media attention that you might not otherwise have. That being said, not all endorsements are created equal. The weakest endorsements come from non-political entities such as actors, comedians, and musicians. While you lose nothing from those endorsements those endorsements are quickly forgotten within a week of their announcement. They tend to help the celebrity endorsing you, than they help your own campaign. Although it is flattering and a good sign regarding your campaign, you should focus on gathering endorsements either from political outsiders or political insiders. Endorsements from political outsiders are important to galvenize the support of independent voters. For progressives, there are a wide number of political outsiders with clout you can appeal to.
People such as Jesse Ventura, Ralph Nader, and Jimmy Dore are examples of such outsiders. Political commentators can walk the fine line between political outsiders and political insiders, giving you appeal with like-minded independents, and more conventional voters. Political commentators like Krystal Ball, Michael Moore, and Thom Hartmann can lend you credibility to galvanize the left. Endorsements from political insiders gives you more legitimacy among traditional voters, centrists, and the media. It can help create positive coverage for your campaign, and it gives your campaign more legitimacy. The most evident political insiders are other politicians, institutions, and notable public figures. If you are a smaller candidate, or running for a lesser office there are a number of organizations that help progressives win presidential elections. Working with Justice Democrats, Democratic Socialists of America, and the newly formed Rebellion Pac might help you find the right people to get elected. Getting the endorsement of organizations such as Planned Parenthood, AFL-CIO, and AARP are critical for progressive candidates who are likely to be out-spent by powerful corporations and right-wing think tanks.
The most powerful endorsements come from currently elected and retired politicians however. The one thing that semented Joe Biden’s nomination for the presidency was Barrack Obama’s endorsement, and possible support behind the scenes. Sources close to Barrack Obama said that the former president expressed a dislike of Bernie Sanders, and would stop him from becomming the nominee back in November of 2019. Which was reported by many reputable news sources at the time. Even mainstreme news sources like CNN and Fox News covered the story. Unfortunately for progressives these endorsements are the hardest to get because progressives are a minority in government even if their ideology is popular with the American people. What progressives can do however is counter anti-endorsements from the establishment by sticking to the prior two lessons on how to win an election. Fourthly, progressives need to build coalitions with left-leaning independents outside the democratic party, and reach out to grass-roots activists to broaden their base.
Reaching out to left-wing independents, and forming political coalitions with left-leaning third parties helps broaden your base of support, create in-roads for likeminded people to join your own party, and helps legitimize like-minded groups and individuals get a foot hold in American politics. This is one of the good things that came out of the Howie Hawkins campaign, despite our setbacks and failure to reach our goals. The Green Party built a good relationship with the Socialist Party, which might strengthen both parties in future elections. I believe this isn’t just helpful to advance causes which might not necessarily have a chance, but also mutually beneficial for progressives working within the Democratic Party. You earn the audience of those you give a platform to, so it is particularly advantageous for progressives who are running for office to pay attention to left-wing politics outside the Democrats. Particular groups of interest should be the Green Party, Socialist Party USA, and the Party for Socialism and Liberation. Which are the three biggest left-wing third parties in America. Part of being a progressive politician is that you are as much a political activist as a politician.
So you should also keep up with social movements within the country, and stay involved at the grass-roots level. Particular movements progressive candidates should be involved with includes Black Lives Matter, the #MeToo Movement, and the Sierra Club. Depending on the office you are running for you can leverage this support not only in primaries, but also to run as an independent candidate against both parties after a failed democratic primary run. This is the nuclear option progressive candidates have when the DNC plays favorites. The threat to split the vote, and doom a centrist candidate gives you incredible leverage over the party. Depending on the election, and the rules that apply you might even win as an independent if you play your cards right. Of course some election laws might barr you from running as an independent if you lose the primary. Particularly in lower offices like the house of representatives, and the United States Senate.
For the presidency it is easier to run as an independent after a failed primary run, as both Ross Perot and John Anderson both ran for president as independents after losing their primaries. Now some people will claim this nuclear option shoots the progressive agenda in the foot because you effectively split the vote making it more likely for the more conservative candidate to win. However, I would argue that this is a win-win position for progressives. If we beat both the liberals and the conservatives from the left as an independent we would have a mandate to push our agenda forward. If we lose to the more conservative candidate this helps progressives in the short-term to grow their ranks, and radicalize centrist liberals into becoming leftists. Any time the less progressive person on the left wins we ultimately lose because they will always sellout to the right. So defeating the moderates should take precedence over taking out conservatives politically speaking.
Article submitted by Gregory Ditzler.
