For a few years now, Democrats haven't been able to go a single election without declaring, “Democracy is on the ballot,” or something like that. Yet, once again, Democrats are being accused of being anti-democratic.
A coalition of Democratic outsider candidates went public this week with a blistering joint statement accusing the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee of putting its thumb on the scale six months before primary voters get a say. The issue is the DCCC's decision to announce its first round of "Red to Blue" candidates for 2026, endorsing fundraising frontrunners in competitive House districts including VA-01, WI-03, and NC-11.
The DCCC says its "Red to Blue" program is a battle-tested system that funnels organizational and fundraising muscle toward candidates who've hit aggressive grassroots benchmarks. "These are all strong candidates. They're the ones who are going to be the general election candidate, and they're the ones that we think can win the general election,” DCCC Chair Rep. Suzan DelBene explained.
But we all know what that really means. The party brass in Washington, D.C., has decided who the candidates should be. Game over. Thanks for playing. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out. Better luck next time.
The 17 candidates pushing back aren't buying it.
"This is exactly what we as Democrats have been complaining about for years," Jason Knapp, a candidate in Virginia's 1st Congressional district, said. "And we're just doing it again."
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The candidates believe (accurately, I might add) that the national committee's early institutional blessing warps the entire playing field long before most voters have tuned in. "Such early institutional backing also carries significant influence in the primary process — often shaping fundraising pipelines, access, and perceived viability before voters have had the opportunity to evaluate the full field," the coalition wrote in its statement. "You cannot argue that democracy is on the ballot in November while narrowing democracy in the primaries from now through August.… If a candidate is strong, they should be able to earn support in open competition."
Hard to argue with that. When party bosses in Washington decide the winner before a single vote is cast, calling it a "primary" is basically a courtesy.
The shut-out candidates also accused the DCCC of "completely subverting the democratic primary process" — a charge that stings a little more when it's coming from within the tent. Their statement cuts right to the contradiction: "Primaries are not an inconvenience, they are the foundation of democratic legitimacy." They also argued that "Constituents deserve the opportunity to compare ideas, hear open debate, and decide for themselves who will represent them rather than being told who to vote for."
The drama is especially sharp in North Carolina's 11th District, where multiple Democratic candidates pushed back hard on the DCCC's decision to place Jamie Ager on the "Red to Blue" list. Their message was blunt: "You cannot argue that democracy is on the ballot in November while narrowing democracy in the primaries."
Will any of this matter? Not a chance. After all, this is the same party that shoved Joe Biden out of the 2024 race once it became impossible to ignore his decline, then handed the nomination to Kamala Harris without a single vote from actual voters. It's also the same party whose operatives rigged the 2016 primary against Bernie Sanders to clear a path for Hillary Clinton.
It’s a pattern of hostility to the democratic process.
The irony is almost too rich. The party that spent years warning Americans about threats to democracy is now getting lectured about democracy by its own candidates. Some lessons, it seems, are only learned the hard way.
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