The Democratic National Committee is facing a deepening crisis, marked by internal division, financial instability, and a crumbling relationship with labor leaders — all just months into Ken Martin’s tenure as party chair.
Reports from The New York Times — not known for conservative sympathies — confirmed what many political observers have suspected: the DNC is in disarray and struggling to stay afloat. The Times didn’t mince words, with its blunt headline: “The DNC Is in Chaos and Desperate for Cash.” If even the flagship of the legacy media is willing to throw up warning flares, it’s safe to say the problems are far worse behind the scenes.
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Major donor support has dried up, and six anonymous insiders confirmed to the Times that fundraising efforts have flatlined. Martin, the newly-installed chair, hasn’t even spoken to many key donors — and those who have heard from him aren’t opening their wallets. Meanwhile, he’s expanded financial obligations to every state and territory, including distant outposts like Guam, pushing the DNC’s resources to the brink.
In a particularly damaging blow, prominent union leaders Randi Weingarten (AFT) and Lee Saunders (AFSCME) both stepped down from their at-large DNC roles after Martin removed them from the influential Rules and Bylaws Committee. That committee governs how Democrats nominate their presidential candidates — hardly a side gig. Losing top labor allies, especially in a party that leans so heavily on union backing, is not just symbolic. It's strategic disaster.
Weingarten’s departure follows months of drama involving David Hogg, a former activist elevated to DNC leadership by the party’s progressive wing. The internal conflict between Hogg and Martin reportedly dragged on for weeks. Congressman Mark Pocan dismissed the spectacle as worse than “a high school student-council drama.” That might be generous.
Beyond the theatrics, the DNC is leaking like a sieve. Party operatives are spilling information to the press, suggesting either a coordinated effort to undermine Martin or a leadership vacuum so severe that even loyalty has gone out the window. Neither explanation inspires confidence.
Martin, for his part, denies that the party plans to borrow money — yet the very fact that borrowing has been discussed indicates just how dire the financial situation has become. He’s tried to spin the narrative with claims about strong grassroots fundraising, but if that were true, the panic wouldn’t be setting in.
Adding insult to injury, Martin launched a new YouTube show called The Daily Blueprint, which he hoped would serve as a new digital outreach tool. According to the Times, it features “high-end production,” but it’s reaching barely more than a few hundred viewers per episode. For a national political party trying to energize a base ahead of a presidential election, those are catastrophic numbers.