US Democrats on Saturday elected Ken Martin, the party leader in Minnesota, as the national chairman, turning to a low-profile Midwestern political operative to co-ordinate their resistance to Donald Trump’s presidency.
Mr Martin succeeds Jaime Harrison of South Carolina at the top of the Democratic National Committee.
Mr Harrison did not seek another term after the 2024 election when Mr Trump became the first Republican to win the popular vote in two decades and made modest gains with core Democratic constituencies — African Americans, Latinos and working-class voters, among them.
“It’s time to get off the mat, dust ourselves off and get back in this fight.”
He is now one of the most important players in the Democratic Party’s comeback attempt as Mr Trump pushes the limits of presidential power.
Mr Martin offered a warning to Mr Trump and his Republican allies after the vote was announced: “We’re coming. This is a new Democratic Party. We’re taking the gloves off.”
The vote played out in suburban Washington as more than 400 DNC members from every state and US territory gathered for the party’s winter meeting.
Mr Martin and the other leading contender, Wisconsin party chairman Ben Wikler, promised to refocus the Democratic message on working-class voters, strengthen Democratic infrastructure across the country and improve the party’s anti-Trump rapid response system.
They pledged not to shy away from Democrats’ dedication to diversity and minority groups, a pillar of the modern-day party.
Mr Martin is the first white man to lead the DNC since 2011.
Also in the race were Martin O’Malley, a former Maryland governor and Biden administration official, and Faiz Shakir, who managed Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders’ last presidential campaign.
While the Democrats inside the cavernous hotel ballroom cheered Mr Martin’s election, not every one was convinced that he alone can lead the party’s resurgence.
Jeanna Repass, the Kansas Democratic chairwoman who was running for DNC vice chair, described Mr Martin as “a workhorse” instead of “a champion”.
“Your workhorse pulls the plough, and you need that. But we don’t have that voice, that champion, to get out in front of us,” Ms Repass said.
“Donald Trump, for all of his faults, is able to get up there and lie with impunity and do it convincingly, and I don’t hear or see that voice in our party.”
