Dem Groups Want Commitment From DNC Hopefuls for Down-Ballot Resources

A coalition of Democratic groups is aiming to secure a commitment from the next DNC chair to funnel investment into grassroots infrastructure. The effort, spearheaded by training organization Arena, currently has 13 group signatories.  

By signing onto it, the DNC chair candidate would be agreeing to invest in “permanent organizing infrastructure” to run continuous voter registration efforts, training of grassroots leaders and staff, longer-term local funding “to build party infrastructure and capacity in all 50 states,” and a commitment to diversity in hiring and candidate recruitment.

Lauren Baer, managing partner of Arena, told C&E the effort is a reaction to how resources were spent last cycle.

“We spent $1.2 billion on the top of the ticket last cycle. Most of that in [advertising], leaving very little to show for it at the end of the day. So we start from the premise here that we really need to start thinking about building resiliency and building power over the long term, not just investing in short-term cycle wins,” Baer said. “That’s the genesis of this pledge.”

The DNC chair campaign is typically not a closely watched contest, but Baer believes that whoever takes over that position in 2025 will have a unique opportunity to shape campaign strategy for the left going forward.

“We fundamentally believe that if the new DNC chair commits to investing in permanent organizing infrastructure, in grassroots leadership, in recruiting training, and retaining campaign staff and … really building a party that reflects the diversity of our country, then that individual will be laying the groundwork for wins, not only this cycle, but well into the future,” she said.

Baer added: “A lot of these organizations who have signed onto this pledge have been doing this infrastructure building work for years on a shoestring budget.”

But now, in light of how money was spent in 2024 and the results those resources yielded, it’s time to rethink budget allocation, according to Baer.

It wasn’t just an issue for how Harris-Walz was spending its budget, Baer noted. It’s also an issue down-ballot. “This is a different way of thinking that we’re asking folks to adopt, but one that we think we have proven out over the last eight years can have a great impact on our ability to win and ultimately to govern.”

The Democratic presidential last cycle pledged to funnel $24.5 million to down ballot campaigns, but practitioners have told C&E that the money either never showed up or came in too late. Baer said resource allocation has two challenges:

“It’s both a question of when the money gets released and how the money gets [spent],” she said. “If you wait to release funds until it’s very late in the cycle, there are a limited range of purposes towards which those funds can be deployed.

“When you raise resources early, when you deploy resources early, they can be deployed more nimbly in ways that allow us to build power from the ground up in our communities and build the kind of coalitions that we actually need to win.”

The pledge is available here. The DNC chair election takes place on Feb. 1.