AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:
After a bruising defeat in the 2024 election, Democrats gathered near Washington, D.C., to start planning their next steps and to choose a new leader. Their pick, Minnesota Democratic Farmer Labor Party chair Ken Martin, says the party will be more aggressive under his leadership. Minnesota Public Radio's Dana Ferguson was on the ground for the contest and has more.
DANA FERGUSON, BYLINE: Democrats from around the country packed a suburban Maryland conference center Saturday to start charting their path forward. With President Donald Trump back in the White House and Republicans in full control of Congress, many acknowledged they needed a reset.
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GLENN IVEY: You got here just in time 'cause it's crazy on Capitol Hill right now. We need you. We need the reinforcements. We need to fight.
FERGUSON: That's Maryland congressman Glenn Ivey. As Democratic Party chair Jaime Harrison prepared to step down, eight candidates threw their hats into the ring to replace him. Ken Martin and Ben Wikler of the Minnesota and Wisconsin parties respectively and former Maryland governor Martin O'Malley had the most support. Volunteers and supporters filled the hallways outside the conference room to try and notch last-minute votes. They cheered and marched along with a drum line.
(CHEERING)
FERGUSON: Inside, Democrats filled rows of tables as Harrison gaveled in the meeting.
JAIME HARRISON: So I hereby call this meeting of the Democratic National Committee to order.
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FERGUSON: One by one, the candidates went before the group to make the case for why they should lead the party into its next chapter.
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KEN MARTIN: I'm running for G - DNC chair because it's time to get off the mat, to dust ourselves off and to get back in this fight.
MARTIN O'MALLEY: These are not ordinary times. This is not a normal DNC election. This is a time that cries out for new leadership and for change.
BEN WIKLER: The world needs the Democratic Party to get up off the mat, but the world doesn't get to vote. You do.
FERGUSON: That was Martin, O'Malley and Wikler, asking Democrats to support them. Ultimately, Martin won. Supporters broke out in cheers and chants of, yes, we Ken.
UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: (Chanting) Yes, we Ken. Yes, we Ken.
FERGUSON: Martin said, with the contest over, Democrats need to unite.
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MARTIN: The fight's not in here. The fight's out there, right?
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: Yeah.
MARTIN: The fight's not in here. The fight is for our values. The fight is for working people. The fight right now is against Donald Trump and the billionaires who bought this country.
(CHEERING)
FERGUSON: The Democratic Party chair will serve as a political foil to the president over the next four years. And Martin said he's ready to take a tougher tack right away.
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MARTIN: We're taking the gloves off. I've always viewed my role as a chair of the Democratic Party to take the low road so my candidates and elected officials can take the high road, meaning I'm going to throw a punch. So Donald Trump, Republican Party, this is a new DNC.
FERGUSON: He says the party will work quickly to build up a war room to respond to mis- and disinformation, and it will launch a review to understand how and why Democrats came up short in 2024.
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MARTIN: Right? We know that we lost ground with Latino voters. We know we lost ground with women and younger voters and, of course, working-class households. We don't know the how and why at this moment, and that's what I need to get my hands around.
FERGUSON: Those answers will be key, since Democrats are already preparing for midterm elections in 2026 and the next presidential contest in 2028. For NPR News, I'm Dana Ferguson in National Harbor, Maryland.
(SOUNDBITE OF SALIN'S "SI CHOMPHU") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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