OPINION: Politics is an inexact science

Politics is an inexact science. We rarely know with complete confidence why one candidate for office wins or why another candidate loses.

That has not stopped the KCRCC from making broad triumphalist claims about the 2024 election result while blasting blatant lies about “losing” Democratic policies. 

These claims amplify misconceptions about the human rights of some of the most vulnerable and marginalized population groups, Blacks, Native Americans and LGBTQ+ people.

They claim Republican victory was due to Democratic support for diversity, equity, and inclusion programs — crying “reverse discrimination.” But let’s be clear — inclusivity makes us all better. All the same, leveraging fear brought their voters to the polls.

In election messaging, Republicans pointed to individuals whose gender identity is non-binary as a threat to our nation. In election messaging, Republicans waved the false flag of “government-funded gender mutilation” while echoing the sickening lie that LGBTQ+ people are synonymous with pedophilia. 

This lie was leveraged because Republicans know that sex is a powerful emotional subject. Voters who think their kids are under threat are more likely to turn out for a candidate who claims “I am your retribution.” 

Importantly, the GOP also tries to disguise or divert attention from their candidate’s immorality and misdeeds. He is constantly lying and has 34 felony convictions. His sole legislative accomplishment was a multi-trillion dollar tax break for the rich. Those are big downsides that the KCRCC does not want voters to think about.

Trump, who declared his candidacy more than three and a half years ago, had the benefit of a long campaign. Americans heard his fearful and deceptive messaging over and over since he lost in 2020. (Reminder: Trump did actually lose in 2020).

He had significant help from right-wing media platforms that embraced his every word swiftly and uncritically, and then amplified them many times over. Fox and Joe Rogan never questioned his veracity, maintained fairness or attempted objectivity.

All of this isn’t to say that Democrats aren’t interested in self assessment. Democrats are taking a close look at our role in this election’s outcome.

Democrats accept that our low voter turnout may have been due to not listening adequately to voters or adequately countering Trump’s phony appeals to working class individuals. 

Democrat-led legislation that provided investments in infrastructure, manufacturing and environmental safeguards are just now beginning to pay off. Too late to give our candidates any electoral help.

Going forward, as roads and bridges are rebuilt, as America starts to regain manufacturing jobs and as even more quality jobs are created, Democrats must remind working class voters that not one Republican legislator ever supported these job creating bills. Not one.

And we must continually remind voters of all that the Republicans took away from them: tax cuts only for the rich, fully funded public schools, access to books at libraries, women’s health care, public lands and confidence in the truth.

We need to continue to run candidates for offices in all levels of government. Because voters deserve choices. 

But for those of us on the losing side, the 2024 election left one BIG question unanswered: What will it take before Americans select a Black woman as well qualified as Kamala Harris over a white male who is a convicted felon, a serial liar, a serial cheater and an overall business failure?

With or without definitive answers to all these questions, Democrats know that our struggle continues.

When our kids fall off a bicycle, we don’t tell them to give up. We tell them: “You can do it. Just try again.”

Similarly, Democrats will now pick themselves up, dust themselves off, carefully assess what we can do better, and start all over.

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Evan Koch is chairman of the Kootenai County Democrats.