Democrats Launch Rural Voter Engagement Initiative
The Democratic Party is initiating a new investment strategy aimed at engaging voters in rural areas, where the party has experienced significant electoral declines in recent cycles. This effort is part of a broader campaign to secure a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives in the upcoming election.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) has confirmed that this marks the first instance of a program specifically dedicated to engaging rural voters.
Strategy and Rationale
Suzan DelBene, Chair of the DCCC, indicated that Democrats perceive an opportunity to connect with rural voters as President Trump's economic agenda, particularly tariffs, faces declining popularity. DelBene asserted that rural voters are observing the 'damage' caused by Republican policies, which she stated have led to 'costs going up, health care being gutted.' She posited that Democrats can offer an alternative.
DelBene told NPR, "I think Republicans are turning their back. They've been actively hurting rural communities with the policies they've put in place. Democrats are fighting to improve the lives of rural Americans and farmers."
An administration official recently informed NPR that President Trump has defended his economic agenda and plans to convey this message to the country shortly.
Investment and Focus Areas
The Democratic investment in rural communities is part of an "eight-figure investment," as detailed in a DCCC press release shared with NPR. DelBene stated that the DCCC has assigned a full-time staff member to focus on "strategic rural engagement across the country" in preparation for the midterms. The party has initiated collaborations with rural community organizations and leaders in key competitive districts, including recently redrawn districts in South Texas.
DelBene emphasized the importance of rural voters, stating, "When we look at the swing districts across the country, the districts that are going to determine the majority in the House of Representatives, we know that rural voters are key in those districts."
Expert Perspectives on Rural Engagement
Anthony Flaccavento, co-founder and executive director of the Rural Urban Bridge Initiative, suggested that economic frustrations among a majority of voters could provide an opening for Democrats, noting that rural voters often align with economically populist policies.
"It's very clear to us that a progressive, populist economic stance is what is needed," Flaccavento stated. "It's what is needed in substance. Like we need the anti-monopolies, antitrust, pro-union-and-investment-in-infrastructure-type things that go with that."
However, it remains uncertain whether an economic message will enable Democrats to regain support from a voting bloc that has increasingly moved away from the party.
Challenges in Re-engaging Rural Voters
According to the Pew Research Center, in the most recent presidential election, Donald Trump secured 69% of voters who identify their communities as rural, compared to Kamala Harris's 29%.
Flaccavento described the task of re-engaging rural voters as potentially "hard as hell" for Democrats but underscored it as a necessary challenge for the party. He also noted significant commonalities between working-class individuals in small towns and cities and rural populations regarding reasons for disaffection with the Democratic Party.
Flaccavento, a small farmer and self-identified liberal Democrat who ran for Virginia's 9th Congressional District twice, recalled his 2018 campaign efforts, which included over 100 in-person town halls, significant social media engagement, and fundraising. Despite these efforts, he stated he "still got annihilated at the voting box 2 to 1."
He suggested that negative perceptions of Democrats in rural areas have been persistent, particularly due to the party's perceived downplaying of economic concerns held by working-class and rural populations.
Nicholas Jacobs, a political scientist at Colby College, stated that Democrats have not only dismissed rural voters' concerns but have also "actively push[ed] them away." Jacobs noted that the party reduced campaign investments in rural America after abandoning its 50-state strategy, opting instead to focus on mobilizing base voters in urban centers and persuading independent-leaning voters in suburbs.
Jacobs paraphrased a statement attributed to Senator Chuck Schumer: "for every rural working-class person we lose, we'll pick up two more in the suburbs." Jacobs characterized this approach as "foolish" based on the 2016 election results, suggesting it did not lead to subsequent changes in strategy for eight years.
Flaccavento concurred that this has been "a losing strategy" for the party.
Both experts suggested that more than targeted investments in a few swing districts may be necessary to rebuild support in rural America. Flaccavento expressed hope for a "serious commitment, not a token commitment," extending beyond a limited number of races. He advocated for "long-term investment and long-term work across every rural congressional district," acknowledging that some districts might take five to ten years or more to become competitive.
Jacobs concluded by stating his hope that Democrats have begun to "wake up" to the importance of rural areas. He emphasized that building a national party and competing nationally requires representing "the entire nation and all of its wonderful and complex messiness," which includes the integration of rural Americans into the national political framework.