NEW YORK (AP) — Democratic leaders eager to compete in red states where their party’s brand is toxic are embracing something new in the midterm elections: not supporting Democrats.
In states like Nebraska and Alaska, Democratic officials have in some cases ignored their own party candidates while subtly encouraging and even openly promoting independent candidates they hope will transcend the Democratic label. The Democratic National Committee and some of its allies in Washington are quietly supporting the new strategy.
Meanwhile, some independent candidates are discussing their approach in group texts as they chart a path that could shake up Congress, which is locked in partisan gridlock.
Nebraska Democrats this week selected U.S. Senate nominee Cindy Burbank, who said her campaign’s main priority is ensuring Democrats don’t lose the support of independent Dan Osborne on the fall ballot. Shortly after the vote closed, Burbank reiterated her plan to withdraw in the coming weeks in a private conversation with a party official, according to state Democratic Party Chair Jane Klebb.
Democratic leaders believe Osborne has the best chance of defeating Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts, who is just 7 percentage points away from winning the Senate seat in 2024.
In some places, the Democratic shift toward independents is part of a deliberate strategy, while in others it’s closer to a wink and a nod, which spans some high-profile Senate and House races, and even statehouse races. There are also independent Senate candidates running in states such as Idaho, South Dakota and Montana, where Democratic leadership has so far been reluctant to fully embrace independent candidates, even though many see them as Democrats’ best chance of stopping Republicans this fall.
“For some states, and Nebraska is one of them, where Democrats make up 32 percent of the electorate, this is a long-term strategy for us,” said Cleeb, who also serves as vice chair of the Democratic National Committee.
Kleeb said her state party is backing independents for at least four state legislative seats in addition to the U.S. Senate: “We have to build coalitions with independents to win elections so we can do good work for the people. Period.”
Some of the Democratic Party’s national political machine appears to be involved.
The Democratic fundraising site ActBlue offers services to some independent candidates, as does the popular Democratic coalition website builder. Meanwhile, some of the party’s campaign committees in Washington have quietly provided logistical support in some cases while avoiding public criticism of independent candidates, even in some races with Democratic nominees.
“The Democratic brand is terrible right now,” said Josh Schwerin, a Democratic strategist. “The combination of branding issues and the existential nature of the threats our country faces requires that we have a big tent and look for candidates who can win.”
risky
For the Democratic Party
Some Democratic donors, strategists and party leaders from other states have privately expressed opposition, insisting that Democrats should not overlook their own nominees for short-term political gains. They want Democratic officials in Washington and red states to work harder to make the Democratic brand more attractive — even if it’s still years away from being competitive.
“What will independents do for Democrats if they win?” asked Democratic strategist Mike Ceraso, who believes the shift to independents is in some cases an effort to disguise Democrats’ identities. “We are the party of truth, honesty and integrity and yet we are playing these stupid political games?”
And there is no guarantee that independent candidates, if elected, will support all Democratic policy priorities or even support Democratic leadership in Congress.
In Idaho, independent Senate candidate Todd Achilles, a veteran and former Democratic state legislator, said he would not participate in caucuses with either party if elected. He explains his politics as “straight centrist” and says he believes in individual freedom.
“Idahoans should be able to live their lives the way they want,” he said. But the Democratic Party is not a good fit because it “has abandoned small red states like Idaho.”
Among his list of problems for the Democratic Party is that the party made a big mistake in initially letting Joe Biden run for president again in 2024. But he also said Trump’s “glow is fading” and that Idaho voters will support Trump by 36 percentage points in 2024.
Achilles said he and other veterans running for Senate as independents chatted in a text message chain and were “very much on the same page.” He said the group wants to see “guardrails,” including term and age limits and campaign finance reform.
“The top priority is getting Congress functioning again,” he said. “We have to break the stranglehold of the two-party system.”
‘I will never vote for a Democrat’
In South Dakota, Navy and Air Force veteran Brian Bengers launched an independent campaign to defeat Republican incumbent Sen. Mike Rounds, who is seeking a third term this fall.
Four years ago, Bengus ran as a Democrat against Senate Majority Leader John Thune and lost by 43 points.
A lifelong independent, he said he sought to run in 2022 with the party’s organizational support but without a party label, but was rejected by the party. Still, he insists he can win without the party’s formal support.
He said an important lesson he learned from the 2022 campaign is how difficult it is to break through the Democratic label.
Voters would immediately ask, “What are you?” he recalled.
“When you say, ‘I’m a lifelong independent Democrat,'” Bengus said, the response is quick. “‘I will never vote for a Democrat.’ That’s it,” he said.
“So that’s the point that makes me so sick of running in any party system again because it’s just a soul-sucking experience.”
In Alaska, some Democrats believe retired school principal and commercial fisherman Bill Hill may be their best hope of defeating first-term Republican Rep. Nick Begich for the state’s lone House seat.
Hill, a lifelong independent, raised more than $780,000 in the first three months of the year, beating Democratic pastor Matt Schultz, who raised $578,000 from October to March.
The state Democratic Party declined to endorse Schultz at its recent convention, which Hill also attended. The House Democratic Campaign Committee in Washington has also declined so far to promote Schultz’s candidacy. Hill, meanwhile, is rallying support from local unions.
He said Hill’s message to voters is the same for Republicans, Democrats and independents: “In this election cycle, you need to be pragmatic about who you support because at the end of the day, we need to flip House seats in Alaska.”
A spokeswoman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee criticized independents such as Osborne, Burns, Achilles and Seth Bodnar, who is running in Montana, as “fake independents who will push liberal Democratic policies in the Senate.”
Currently, there are two independents in the Senate: Maine Sen. Angus King and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. Both are members of the Democratic caucuses.
Hill said in an interview that if elected, he would be unlikely to caucus with Republicans in Washington, but he also would not commit to joining the Democratic Party. He was reluctant to criticize Democrats or Trump.
Hill acknowledged the challenges of running for Congress as an independent but said there are also benefits.
“There’s freedom,” he said. “I can truly represent the working people of Alaska.”
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This article has been updated to correct the date Brian Bengs said he was rejected by Democrats as he sought to gain the party’s endorsement. That’s 2022, not this year.
