Here’s the checklist—no fluff, no excuses:
1. Run Everywhere. Seriously.
Stop treating red and red-leaning districts as lost causes. Every race forces the GOP to spend money, defend records, and expose internal fractures. Uncontested seats are political surrender.
“You can’t flip power if you don’t show up.”
2. Recruit Candidates Who Live the Struggle
Voters can smell résumé politicians a mile away. Find candidates who’ve dealt with rising rents, school overcrowding, healthcare bills, grid failures, and job insecurity—and let them speak plainly about it.
3. Lead With Cost of Living, Not Talking Points
Make affordability the headline issue: housing, property taxes, utilities, childcare, healthcare. Culture wars fade fast when families are choosing between groceries and rent.
“Economic pain cuts across party lines. Address it—or lose.”
4. Organize Early—and Stay Visible
No more last-minute ground games. Build year-round organizing operations, invest in local volunteers, and keep knocking doors long before election season headlines kick in.
5. Stop Running Scared of Labels
Voters don’t punish Democrats for being Democrats—they punish them for sounding unsure of what they believe. Be clear about values: fairness, competence, dignity, and accountability.
6. Call Out GOP Failure Relentlessly
Don’t let Republicans campaign on vibes alone. Tie every broken promise—schools, power grids, healthcare deserts—directly to GOP control. Make governance, not ideology, the central test.
7. Treat 2026 Like It’s Already Started
Because it has. Candidate recruitment, donor networks, voter registration, and message discipline should be happening now—not after the next presidential cycle steals the oxygen.
