Purpose of Action Plan

Part 1.Describe changes in policy that correct mistakes Democrats made in 2024
Part 2.Describe policies that Democrats should implement when in power.

Who is the Author?

Donkey Dan is a life-long Democrat who serves as a Precinct Chair in Montgomery County Maryland and is involved in politics at the grassroots level. He is retired from the workforce having worked at several managerial positions, in the private and public sectors.

Why is the Plan Needed?

After the disappointing results of the 2024 election, the Democratic Party needed to do a postmortem analysis to determine the reasons for the loss and to use that information for an action plan and a vision for the future that recaptures the enthusiastic support of the American voters. The Democratic National Committee (DNC), the official public voice of the Party, conducted a postmortem analysis but has refused to publish the report.

Not publishing the report is a big mistake. Every Democrat should be demanding that the report be released. The people who are pleased and will benefit the most from the DNC’s coverup are the Republicans. Management consultants with a focus on improving the performance of organizations know that, in order to put together a plan for the future “To Be” state of an organization, the first and most critical step is to understand the “As Is’ condition of the organization. The DNC Chair talks about some North Star as a guiding destination for the Democratic Party. How in the world can anyone know how to get to a destination, if they do not even know where they are starting from?

Presumably the DNC Chair and associated party insiders have actually read the report and will use that information to guide the party. But the Democratic party is not just the DNC. The best way to guide the party is to share the report so that all party members can understand the reasons for the loss and support changes in policy and messages. As a Precinct Chair in Montgomery County, Donkey Dan would really like to know that the party has learned from its mistakes so he can advocate enthusiastically for the party, and win the future, The DNC is not trusting the Democratic grass roots folks or the voters with that information. Any organization that is so afraid of offending everybody, will have the respect of no one. No wonder the Democratic Party is even less popular than Trump.

Trump’s policies have been so outrageous that the Democrats did very well in November of 2025. But just being against Trump and counting on the affordability issue may not be enough in 2026.  The right ward turn of young men and the loss of blue-collar voters was not because of affordability. The loss of Catholic and other faith based prolife voters was not based on affordability.

Voters listen to and heed candidates that they feel a connection with. Often that connection is based on shared or perceived sharing of prejudices, biases, values, anger, racial or ethnic identity, resentments, religious beliefs, or similar emotion based factors. So, even though blue-collar workers benefit more economically from Democratic policies, many feel connected to the Republican party for social or religious reasons and thus identify with the Republican party. To be successful, the Democratic party needs to reach the hearts as well as the minds of American voters. The plan presented on this website does both.

Note: The plan on this site just describes policy and messages to galvanize actions toward the overall goal of winning elections. It does not include other elements of an action plan — that is the job of the political organization.