Democrats desperate to turn the page as they gather for summer meeting

The Democrats are in a tough stretch. Their fundraising and voter registration lags Republicans. And polls show American voters find the party generally unfavorable.

But at this week’s Democratic National Committee summer meeting in Minneapolis, members are desperate to turn a page, shed a rudderless reputation, and more clearly define their platform as they look to deliver wins in upcoming governor’s races and the midterms next year.

In fact, at least a half dozen members who spoke to ABC News say that they are eager to start fighting back more aggressively against President Donald Trump and feel like some of the problems the party finds itself in is due to compounding factors, rather than the direct fault of Chair Ken Martin, who was elected in early February.

One of the ways Democrats believe they can get their footing back is leaning into the recent outrage around Republican efforts to pursue mid-decade redistricting and take a page out of California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s playbook to give Trump a taste of his own rhetoric. Many members also believe they can resonate with voters as they push back against the impacts Trump’s spending and policy bill have on health care and costs.

“We all know that this is going to be an uphill battle. We all know that there’s tremendous challenges ahead, but we also know that the American people are not happy with the way things are turning out, and you see it in the polling,” said Maria Cardona, a member from Washington, D.C., who brushed off anxieties about Democrats in disarray as “b——t.”

“All of this internal b——t is exactly that — it’s b——t,” Cardona said.

This week’s meeting is the first major gathering of Martin’s tenure — and an early litmus test of his popularity and trust in his leadership, as his first few months have been mired in growing pains.

The DNC reported having around only $14 million cash on hand as of the end of July — far less than the Republican National Committee, which reported having $84.3 million cash on hand. The DNC also fundraised less than the RNC in July.

The news is better for Democrats’ official U.S. House campaign arm. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee reported having $40.4 million cash on hand by the end of July, while its GOP counterpart, the National Republican Congressional Committee, reported having $37.6 million cash on hand. The DCCC also outpaced the NRCC in fundraising in July.

Martin has faced increased scrutiny and criticism over infighting surrounding Gen Z activist David Hogg, who resigned from his role as vice chair after he promised to support primary challenges of incumbent Democrats he saw as complacent. American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten also stepped away from the DNC in June, writing in her resignation letter she is “out of step” with new party leadership. Weingarten endorsed Martin’s most prominent chair challenger, Ben Wikler, the former Wisconsin Democratic Party chair.

When asked by ABC News about Democratic voter registration lagging as reported by The New York Times last week, Martin said the party has “work to do, for sure,” and pointed to the committee’s new organizing summer project, a volunteer training and voter registration initiative that sets to train Democrats to engage — and ideally convert voters — in non-political spaces in battleground areas and online as proof of concept.

“We’ve got to get back to registering voters — that’s what the DNC has already started this year with our summer organizing program. We are doing that with our state parties now,” Martin said during an event at the Minnesota State Fair.

Shasti Conrad, a DNC member from Washington state, said that grief over the election loss has permeated several conversations with fellow members, but has felt a recent energy shift, particularly after Texas House Democrats denied a quorum to delay the passage of new congressional district maps — which now await the signature of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.

“When you lose an election like we did last year, you’re going to feel people’s rage, their sadness, their despair, all of that, and that is very much, has been what has been reverberating through every conversation that I’ve had,” Conrad said. “I think we’re all trying to move through this.”

Conrad continued: “We are starting to really get on solid footing, and that’s my hope with this meeting, is that we’ll be able to walk out of here feeling ‘Ok, we’re settled.'”

Conrad finds some of the handwringing about fundraising and voter registration “slightly overblown” and feels like the organization is in a solid place and has room to grow.

That doesn’t mean internal concerns have evaporated — but members feel concern is finally resulting in consensus.

“This is the crows coming home to roost. We’ve abandoned partisan voter registration for a very long time and it’s no surprise that we’re not only losing elections, but we’re also losing voters,” said progressive DNC member Michael Kapp from California. Kapp says he is “so happy” that Martin, in his view, is focused on righting the wrong.

Kapp said he believes it’s a “new day at the DNC” and that many members are frustrated with national Democratic top brass — like Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries — for not doing enough. He also suggested that some members are galvanized to be a more active resistance.

“I see anger. I see willingness to stand up and defend the communities that are being impacted by this administration. I see frustration that we can’t move fast enough, and I know that that’s a frustration that Chair Martin himself feels, but he’s working like crazy,” Kapp said.

“A number of members arrived concerned about the direction of the party, but the focus on unity and messaging has been well received,” North Dakota member Jamie Selzler said. Selzler added that while he expects conversations about the fundraising figures to keep coming up, “There’s a sense that standing up against Republican overreach over the next few years and winning in Virginia and New Jersey this year will be an important factor in proving we can fight back.”

Andre Treiber, a Texas DNC member and youth council chair, feels like the committee is nearing the end of a “rebuild phase.”

“This is going to be repouring the final cement,” Trieber said. “The Democratic Party definitely has a brand issue, and I think that is what so many people here this week care a lot about fixing.”

For John Verdejo, a DNC member from North Carolina, the next step for the party is to keep things simple — focus on core issues like affordability, for instance — and stop feeling sorry for yourself.

“We need to get our message straight,” said Verdejo, who stressed the party should keep things simple: focus on core issues like affordability, for instance.

Verdejo understands why some members of the party may be licking their wounds post-loss, but believes the complaining should wrap as the committee reaches a critical transition point. Internally, there’s a desire for more fighters, Verdejo said, which he does see reflected in Martin, who he and other Democrats who spoke to ABC maintain is broadly well-liked despite the early challenges of his tenure.

“We need to, we need to think differently, strategically, dirty even, take the gloves off. Never mind the polling, never mind what the stats say. Never mind what the numbers say … people want to see that fire in us. Let’s give it to them. This is life or death out here,” Verdejo added.

ABC’s Oren Oppenheim contributed to this report.