Democrats need to elect pragmatic problem solvers

Last week’s primary in California should be a warning to Democrats across the country to elect more effective leaders.

What happened in California, the nation’s most populous state and a Democratic stronghold, could have implications in other states in the midterms in November and beyond.

While Gov. Gavin Newsom emerged and several other top Democrats emerged safely in statewide races and the Legislature will remain in Democratic control, voters in firmly Democratic-controlled cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco expressed a desire for change.

In Los Angeles, the front runner in the Democratic primary for mayor is billionaire Republican-turned Democrat who spoke to voter’s frustration with crime and homelessness. Caruso spent more than $40 million on the contest, much of it from his $4.3 billion fortune. He positioned himself as an outsider who is willing to tackle the city’s homeless crisis, soaring rents and worries over crime. He will face Democratic Rep. Karen Bass, a progressive, in a November runoff.

In San Francisco, voter recalled the top prosecutor.

Progressive Democratic District Attorney Chesa Boudin was elected in 2019 after promising a new approach to law enforcement that stressed alternatives to incarceration and ending the war on drugs that disproportionately harmed Black and Brown communities.

He was ousted in a recall by a wide margin last Tuesday amid longstanding complaints over open drug use, robberies and vandalism. 

Boudin’s loss could have an impact in Los Angeles where a campaign is underway to recall progressive District Attorney George Gascon.

Are Democrats turning against progressives and reforms? Will they turn to Republicans?

I don’t think so.

I don’t think this is an indictment of progressive politics and reform. Progressive District Attorney Larry Krasner easily won re-election in Philadelphia, though more needs to be done to decrease violent crime in the city. 

President Joe Biden is not a progressive and he is doing poorly in the polls.  

Voters want to see results.

I believe what we saw when voters from New York, the nation’s largest city, elected Eric Adams, a former police captain and state representative, as mayor in November, was mainly because he ran on reducing violent crime.

Time will tell if Adams delivers on his promises but appears to have a pragmatic approach to solving problems, which is what the Democrats and the nation need.

Democrats need leaders in the mold of former President Barack Obama and on the local level like former Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, who ran and significantly reduced the homicide rate in his city.  

Despite the nation’s long-standing problems with racism, Obama was elected twice and rescued the nation from the Great Recession and increased access to health care through the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. He ran an effective and scandal-free administration despite Republican determined efforts to block his every move.

Biden must show better results. 

Democrats are defending a slim, endangered majority in Congress while facing midterm elections that typically punish the party in the White House. They are also facing a spike in violent crime and rising inflation. 

Pragmatic Democrats are the realistic answer rather than third parties that are too weak to win state and national elections and only serve as spoilers. 

The Republican Party was once the party that mainly espoused conservative values, small government, tax cuts and increased defense spending.

Today, many of its top leaders spread conspiracies about debunked election fraud and racist theories about whites being deliberately replaced from the country. 

The GOP has become a party of extremists and Trump loyalists, ready to deny facts and violently riot when they lose an election.

But Democrats have been ineffective in countering Republican narratives and ineffective in governing, especially when it comes to reducing crime and homelessness.

Unless they do better in improving the quality of life in many cities, voters will become apathetic and not turnout.