Dem campaign officials lay out 'stakes of the 2024 election' to mark a year out

Top Democratic campaign officials are laying out the stakes of the 2024 election in a joint statement to mark one year until Election Day.

The statement, first provided exclusively to The Hill, comes from Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chair Sen. Gary Peters (Mich.), Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Rep. Suzan DelBene (Wash.) and Democratic Governors Association Chair Gov. Phil Murphy (N.J.).

Leaders from the Democratic Attorneys General Association, Democratic Association of Secretaries of State, Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee and Democrat Mayors Association also signed onto the statement.

“One year from now, voters will head to the polls and hold Republicans accountable for their unpopular, extreme MAGA agenda. The stakes of the 2024 election could not be higher: MAGA Republicans are running on an out-of-touch, extreme platform to rip away Americans’ fundamental freedoms, working overtime to roll back the clock on reproductive rights, slash Social Security and Medicare, and rig the economy for the wealthy while leaving working families behind,” the officials said.

The statement does not mention former President Trump, who is the GOP presidential front-runner, by name, but it does refer to so-called MAGA Republicans.

It also argues that President Biden is focused on lowering costs and defending democracy ahead of next November.

“While Republicans are proving themselves to be the party of chaos, division, and extremism, Democrats — from President Biden on down — are focused on fighting to lower costs for working families, protecting our hard-won freedoms, and defending democracy at home and abroad,” the party leaders said.

Their statement comes just after President Biden’s campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez issued a warning that while their team feels prepared a year out, they are expecting a razor-tight race, which will likely be a rematch against Trump. She noted that Democratic gains in key states, especially in 2020 and in the midterms, when Democrats had a better-than-expected performance, will help the president in next year.

The officials on Saturday also argued that voters in 2020 and 2022 rejected the GOP agenda and will do it again in 2024. And they expressed confidence that not only Biden will be reelected but Democrats will take back the House, keep the Senate and win local elections. 

Trump is the runaway leader in the GOP primary, and, despite his legal problems, enjoys a healthy lead in national polling and in the key early primary states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. Polls show a very tight match-up between Trump and Biden.

“With so much at stake, we cannot afford to take next year’s election for granted. Our freedom, our democracy, and all of the progress we have made to lower costs for working families, create jobs, rebuild the economy, and take on the existential threats facing our planet are once again on the line and under threat by MAGA extremists,” the officials said.