In the aftermath of the DNC unapologetically rigging its primaries against progressive Bernie Sanders supporters in 2016, a growing number of progressives and young voters are choosing to leave the Democratic Party, citing what they describe as irreparable corruption. Many others, however, believe the best way to fight back is to effect a hostile takeover of the party from within. The fact that we have these competing views is not a problem. What is a problem, however, is the prevailing assumption among both factions that these two strategies are mutually exclusive. I don't believe that they are.
Proponents of an internal revolution within the Democratic Party, led by Sen. Bernie Sanders, will tell you that the current two-party duopoly makes any effort to run for higher office outside one of the two major parties virtually impossible. Instead, they’re focusing on taking over the party at the local levels and launching primary challenges against the establishment-supported incumbents. These are sound ideas, though detractors are quick to point out that they do have flaws.
Progressives who have decided to kick the Democrats to the curb argue that fighting for equal representation within a party that has already demonstrated that they’re willing to violate even their own rules in order to prevent that from happening is a futile endeavor. After all, if too many people are voting for the candidate the leadership doesn’t like, they can always just prevent people from voting again by altering their party affiliations in closed primary states without their consent like they did in 2016. That’s in addition to the corporate media already declaring the establishment candidate the winner before a single vote is cast. These folks, often identified by the “#DemExit” hashtag, mostly believe that starting a new party or joining an existing third party is the only answer.
Therein lies the problem, according to many Berniecrats. While there's a consensus among #DemExit supporters that it's time for progressives and young people to leave the Democratic Party, nobody can seem to agree on exactly where we should all go from there. In our severely outdated first-past-the-post voting system, scattering votes across many different candidates and parties essentially guarantees that your movement will have little to no representation.
Both of these factions make valid arguments, which has led to a lot of debate and disagreement. Unfortunately, this has also resulted in a growing amount of animosity and division among progressives. In some cases, I’ve even seen outright in-fighting, where each group accuses the other of not being progressive and/or trying to sabotage the movement. This needs to stop, as it accomplishes nothing and plays right into the hands of those in the political establishment who would like to see us remain marginalized and ignored.
So which strategy do I think is best? That’s simple: Both. There’s no reason why we can’t fight to take over the Democratic Party from within while also putting pressure on them in the form of outside challenges, especially if the two factions coordinate their efforts.
For example, Berniecrats who manage to gain enough control at the state-level can push the states to adopt ranked choice instant-runoff voting, which would mean that independent and third-party candidates would no longer be at a disadvantage because "lesser-evilism" would no longer apply. Everyone could vote for who they want without having to worry about helping the Boogey Man du jour win. This will enable the #DemExit faction to start really making gains, diminishing the power and resources of the two major parties as they lose seats all across the country. That, in turn, should weaken the neoliberal party establishment enough for the Berniecrats to finally succeed in claiming the Democratic Party as their own.
The blueprint to our success lies in mutual cooperation, not converting everyone to the same way of thinking. People who want to leave the party should do so, while those who choose to remain should not be discouraged. Instead of focusing on trying to convince the other side that your way is better, try to think of how you could use the benefits of your way to help them with what they’re trying to accomplish. Diversity of perspectives is not a weakness. It is perhaps our greatest strength. So let’s use it and work together toward our common goals.