Opinions and Editorials Section
By Connor Juracek, Staff Writer
Former Senate candidate Angie Nixon (D-FL) recently lost her election to Sen. Ashley Moody (R-FL) by three points in the Nov. 3 midterm elections because the Democratic Party and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) refused to help a progressive Democrat in a Senate election they could have won.
Schumer did not send a single dollar to Nixon’s campaign, despite sending money to other Senate campaigns in deep-red states like Mississippi and South Carolina.
Though not bountiful, Scott Colom (D-MS) and Sen.-elect Annie Andrews (D-SC) received several million dollars from Schumer and other Democratic-affiliated Political Action Committees (PACs) before the midterms. Andrews won by five points, and Colom, currently leading by 0.3% with 97% of the vote in, is likely to win.
If the Democratic establishment swallowed their own pride and sent money down to Florida to help Nixon, there would have likely been seen a different outcome. Democrats overperformed in the polls all across the nation, and Nixon was no exception.
Andrews and Colom were far behind in many polls, just like Nixon. However, these two candidates overperformed and turned the election results in their favor. Nixon was down close to eight points in the polls but only lost by three. This was all without funding from the national Democratic Party.
Many commentators on the more moderate to liberal side of politics point to Nixon’s ideology as the reason she lost. Nixon is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). She joined quietly during her primary election against Alex Vindman (D-FL), who she would go on to defeat by 12 points despite being outraised 16:1.
Nixon’s ideology did not cost her this election. Her primary results demonstrated that Democrats in Florida wanted Nixon. She had far less money than Vindman yet secured a double-digit victory.
Staff Writer Connor Juracek finds that Democratic leadership does not have the will to sponsor the more progressive elements of the party
Her race drove turnout to levels never before imagined, especially among black voters.
Her incredible grassroots campaign, along with the overperformance of gubernatorial candidate David Jolly (D-FL), led to historic Democratic gains not seen in decades.
To claim that Nixon lost because she is a socialist Democrat is a deliberate dismissal of progressive candidates.
The left flank of the Democratic Party had historic wins on election night, despite the constant abandonment, sabotage and bitterness from establishment democrats.
Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed (D-MI) and Sen.-elect Peggy Flanagan (D-MN) both overperformed the polls and won by margins ranging from six to seven points on election night. These races also had backing from the establishment.
El-Sayed had endorsements from Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Barack Obama and Kamala Harris. Flanagan was the Lt. Gov. of Minnesota. Nixon was a rising star in the Florida Statehouse.
Nixon did not have establishment connections when she ran for Senate. She was largely ignored because she was both in Florida and self-identified as a Socialist.
Schumer supported moderate candidates in other deep-red states like Kansas, Iowa and Mississippi because he was more aligned with their political beliefs.
Do-nothing Democrats like Schumer and the Democratic establishment at-large have immense contempt for candidates like Nixon. They would rather have a Republican in office than have a progressive Democrat who speaks to the needs of the people without platitudes or corruption. Candidates like Nixon are a threat to the consultancy class, the deference to seniority power and to openness to corruption from the Israel lobby.
What America witnessed on election night was not the result of a bad candidate. It was the result of an abandoned candidate.
Nixon has a bright future in the Democratic Party. If they could get over themselves and release their geriatric grip on political power, the national environment would be dominated by politicians like Nixon.
Though, it is hard to imagine a future where the party that claims to be a “big tent” can encompass generational talent like Nixon. It will take unprecedented levels of grassroots organizing and collective action to recreate the Democratic Party into the party of working Americans. But, if we as individuals continue to fight for candidates like Nixon, we will, within the next few years, inevitably win a better party and future for all.
