MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Wisconsin Democrats gathering for their annual convention this weekend had hoped they would be celebrating historic wins, but instead they are trying to figure out what went wrong in 2016 and quickly fix it before next year’s elections.
They are also working to unite supporters of both Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders while harnessing the energy of newcomers who have become active and formed groups since President Donald Trump’s victory.
“We need to come together and heal as a party, first of all,” said Eric Finch, a 30-year-old attorney running for state party chair. “People are still pointing fingers and throwing blame, all of that. We need to stop doing that.”
Natalia Taft started the Forward Racine group as a way to organize other liberals who were also upset following the 2016 election and looking for ways to be active. Taft, 37, is one of many newly active political volunteers who planned to attend the Democratic convention.
“What I want to hear is strong, unapologetic progressive values,” said Taft, a University of Wisconsin at Parkside biology professor. “I want to hear about strategies for voter turnout, getting people energized, things we can do as a community to effect change. I want some leadership. I want some fresh ideas about how to energize people.”
Gina Walkington, 32, formed the Forward Kenosha group last fall that organized a town hall meeting in House Speaker Paul Ryan’s district last month attended by Democratic U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan.
Walkington said she’s been a passive participant in politics, but decided to become more active after Trump’s win. She’s attending her first Wisconsin Democratic Party convention this weekend.
“The willingness to work together that I’ve seen is a very positive step,” she said of Democrats. “If they keep that going it will really help Wisconsin progressives in future elections.”
The convention kicks off Friday with speeches from U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, who is up for re-election next year, and other office holders. On Saturday, Democrats will decide whether to elect current state party chairwoman Martha Laning to a second term or replace her with one of three challengers.
Laning, a businesswoman from Sheboygan, is being challenged for a second two-year term by Finch, retired business owner Joe Donovan and Glendale Mayor Bryan Kennedy, the former president of the American Federation of Teachers-Wisconsin.
Republicans say the fact that the head of the party faces multiple challengers, and that no top tier candidate has emerged yet to challenge Gov. Scott Walker next year, demonstrates that Democrats are in disarray.
Wisconsin Republican Party spokesman Alec Zimmerman derided Democrats as having a “crumbling infrastructure and no message.”
Democrats admit that mistakes have been made and work needs to be done to improve. The key, several Democratic leaders said, is being inclusive.
“We need everybody,” said Milwaukee-based strategist Sachin Chheda.
Democrats have to energize young voters, speak to people living in rural northern and western Wisconsin who helped fuel Trump’s victory and motivate the base to turn out, said Democratic pollster Paul Maslin.
“We’ve got to be a little bit more Bernie Sanders, it’s pure and simple,” Maslin said.
Sanders won the Democratic primary in Wisconsin. Clinton became the first Democratic presidential candidate to lose Wisconsin since 1984. Republican Sen. Ron Johnson also won re-election and the GOP picked up seats in the Legislature.
Laning, the current chair, said the answer to turning around the party is tapping into the grassroots. Groups like Taft’s in Racine and Walkington’s in Kenosha are sprouting up around the state dedicated to fighting the Trump and GOP agenda.
“All the energy in the state right now is toward resistance,” said Kennedy, one of Laning’s challengers. “All the energy is toward trying to oppose Trump and the Republicans. That’s good, but we also need to start working toward electing Democrats.”
Laning said she has been working to build a stronger Democratic Party from the bottom up, ensuring that candidates have the resources they need to win.
“We’re making it happen,” she said. “This is not the time to switch gears right now, we need to follow through on all these things.”
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