Less than a year out from the midterms, DCCC Chair Suzan DelBene laid out the strategic path for House Democrats to re-take the majority in November with The Bulwark’s Lauren Egan.
Key to House Democrats’ success is candidate quality, specifically Democrats “who are connected to their community, who are focused on the issues that are priorities for their community,” according to DelBene.
DelBene also called out Republicans for running scared and trying to undermine free and fair elections in November because they realize they are losing the American public on top issues like the economy and addressing the GOP health care crisis – issues that will cost them the majority.
See highlights from Chair DelBene’s conversation below:
THERE ARE GENERALLY TWO TYPES OF PEOPLE who run the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the organization tasked with electing Democrats to the House of Representatives: big personalities who steer the party and play a major public role in its messaging, and behind-the-scenes types who do mainly grunt work while ceding the stage and spotlight to the candidates or other party leaders.
Rep. Suzan DelBene aligns more closely with the latter type. A businesswoman who was first elected to Congress in 2012, she does not have much of a national profile or internet footprint. But she has earned praise from her colleagues for her work leading the DCCC in 2024. Despite losing the presidency, Democrats picked up one House seat that cycle—an unexpected showing that was strong enough to convince House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to tap DelBene to run the DCCC again.
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LAUREN EGAN: Talk to me about what specifically you look for when you’re recruiting candidates to run.
SUZAN DELBENE: We’re looking for folks who are connected to their community, who are focused on the issues that are priorities for their community. One thing that I don’t think people always realize is how different [congressional] districts are across the country. We really need those independent-minded folks.
EGAN: “Independent minded” is a phrase that’s been used a lot recently. Is that code for “moderate”?
DELBENE: What it means is folks who are willing to take on issues that are important to their community and just be honest about where they stand and what they would do. I think it’s not giving a cookie-cutter response to an issue, [it’s someone] who maybe will have views that are different from the mainstream view of the party because they’re running to represent that community.
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DELBENE: Great candidates make all the difference. Remember, even in 2024, we picked up seats in the House by having great candidates on the ground talking about the issues that matter. Obviously people are frustrated across the country. They’re hurting. And so I’m not surprised that people are angry. When you actually talk specifically about Democratic members of Congress, people are much more positive because they know someone and they know what they will do for them versus a generic [Democrat].
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DELBENE: This is about authenticity, not people talking because they’ve been giving talking points. I think people can tell if someone’s authentic and speaking their mind, and so that is critically important. We know that Republicans are going to run attack ads, they’re going to try to put words in the mouths of candidates or predict what their positions are going to be. And we want folks to stand up for their views on issues.
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DELBENE: […] frankly, if Republicans thought they were in such a strong position on policy, then why are they trying to rig the system? Redistricting, trying to fight in the Supreme Court to reduce voting rights—they’re doing all of this because they’re not connected with the American people, they’re not on the right side of the issues.
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DELBENE: […] Republicans are attacking voting rights. They’re trying to attack vote by mail, campaign finance laws—rules that have been in place since Watergate. But the powerful thing we have is that people are with us. People hate what Republicans have done on redistricting. The people of Texas did not say: ‘Please redraw the maps.’ Donald Trump said: ‘Give me five seats.’ And Republicans said, ‘Yes.’
