Ben Wikler, chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, announced on Sunday that he was entering the race to lead the Democratic National Committee (DNC).
The race for DNC leadership has officially begun as the position becomes vacant in March as current chairman Jaime Harrison prepares to step down, leaving Democrats at a critical juncture as they face potential challenges in both congressional chambers and the White House in 2025.
In a Sunday interview on CNN’s Inside Politics, Wikler was asked by host Manu Raju if he will run as DNC chair.
Wikler, who has built a reputation as an effective fundraiser and gained respect across party lines for his state leadership of the party, confirmed he will run to lead the DNC.
“I’m running for chair of the Democratic National Committee because we need to unite, we need to fight, and we need to win to stop the GOP from ripping this country apart and ripping off working people to enrich mega billionaires who funded Trump’s campaign. This is a time for Democrats to come together to learn about what we need to do and change and to start winning elections up and down the ballot for the next four years,” he said.
However, Raju interjected to state how some opponents might say that he is a party leader in a state that Vice President Kamala Harris lost to President-elect Donald Trump in last month’s election.
Wikler responded: “Well, the thing about the last four years is that we’ve seen a Republican Party that in Wisconsin came in and tried to dismantle our democracy, robbed working people, smashed unions, attacked public schools, restricted voting rights, and Democrats organized, united, and fought back. And over these last four years, we’ve won election after election, Biden in 2020, Governor [Tony] Evers in 2022, we flipped our state Supreme Court majority,” Wikler said.
Newsweek has reached out to Wikler via email for comment on Sunday morning.
Jim Vondruska/Getty Images
Who Else Is Running?
Wikler is not the only one to enter the race as former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley emerged as the first declared candidate last month in what promises to be a consequential contest for the party’s future.
Martin O’Malley
The 61-year-old former Maryland governor and Baltimore mayor made his bid official on November 18, stepping down from his current role as Social Security Administration (SSA) commissioner, effective November 29.
His platform emphasizes the need for a comprehensive “after-action report” about recent electoral performance, arguing that such analysis should be “based on truth, well researched and based on the facts and numbers.” He plans to lean heavily on his experience leading the Democratic Governors Association and his track record in executive positions.
A person familiar with O’Malley’s plans indicated he has already connected with key party leaders who have “expressed interest in his vision for the Democratic Party’s future.”
Ken Martin
Minnesota Democratic Party chairman Ken Martin has also entered the race in late November and has garnered early support among DNC members. His current role as president of the Association of State Democratic Chairs could provide a strategic advantage in the race. While speaking to The New York Times, Martin said the party’s next leader would have an opportunity to “reimagine the D.N.C.” while “trying to get at what happened in this last election.”
James Skoufis
A relatively unknown New York state senator, James Skoufis announced his bid to be the party’s leader late last month. He has served in the New York State Legislature for 12 years, representing Orange County in the Hudson Valley.
However, his bid is being seen as a long shot as he begins his campaign for DNC chair without extensive relationships with party members beyond his home state.
In an announcement video, Skoufis seemed to acknowledge this as he described himself as an “underdog” and an “outsider.”
Others Who Might Enter the Race
While not officially stating that he will run, U.S. ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel was publicly endorsed by former Obama strategist David Axelrod on his Hacks on Tap podcast, praising him as “the most skillful, political kind of infighter in the Democratic Party” while citing his experience as a congressman, White House chief of staff and Chicago mayor.
Emanuel, who planned to leave his Tokyo post last month, has begun exploring a potential run, according to sources familiar with the efforts.
Mallory McMorrow, a Michigan state senator, is also considering a run as Politico initially reported on her potential interest.
She has since said in an interview with the Times: “I am taking a serious look at it and continuing to talk to as many people as possible. I really want to hear from the members what they’re looking for and what their concerns are as we move forward.”
Max Rose, a former U.S. representative from New York and a moderate Democrat from Staten Island, has come up as a potential contender.
Rose is a former U.S. Army officer who earned a Purple Heart for his service in Afghanistan.
Chuck Rocha, a strategist from Texas who worked on Senator Bernie Sanders’s presidential campaign in 2020, has been teasing a run for DNC chair on social media.
