The electoral sweep by Democrats in this month's elections took place following the massive No Kings Rallies across the country. Former Salisbury University political science professor Michael O'Loughlin suggests this could be the start of a new movement.
RUSH: The Democratic victories in this year's elections may be a harbinger of things to come. The nation saw substantial wins, not only with the governorships in Virginia and New Jersey, but also in down ballot and in local elections. This combined with the large turnout for the No Kings rallies. Former Salisbury University political science professor, Michael O'Loughlin writes, a new political movement may have been born.
O'LOUGHLIN: Democrats won a significant victory in November's election, securing state local offices across the country. The victory was wide and deep with marquee winds in New York City, New Jersey, Virginia, and California. Local office sweeps in school boards and city council elections were also evident all beyond normal electoral outcomes. It represents a clear repudiation of the Republican party now owned by Trump. Exit polls reveal an unmistakable rejection of Trump's economic, immigration and healthcare policies. This electoral event is a result of a political dynamic generated by Trump's policies; tariffs that inevitably raise prices on groceries, a harsh immigration crackdown that violates basic rights of due process and military invasion of our own cities to intimidate democratic state and local officials and citizens. These policies produced a reaction from state and local officials and sparked a nationwide No Kings protest, Organized by a coalition of 200 organizations headlined by Indivisible, the [50501] group, the ACLU and Labor Unions, a form of strategic nonviolent resistance.
The first No Kings protest last spring generated a turnout of at least 3 million protestors. Those numbers expanded to 5 million in June's event and then 7 million last month. It is this historic turnout that likely reinforced a political participatory momentum for the Democrats, the electoral victories. While the rallies have been nonpartisan, their nonviolent character has provided legitimacy for the movement. In stark contrast to the brutish reality of ice raids and immigrant communities, part of their strategy is involved what they call tactical frivolity, including dressing up in frog costumes to playfully lower tensions when confronting Armed National Guard troops, crucial for any resistance movement is a perception of the broader public. Nonviolent movements tend to be perceived more favorably than violent movements. The No Kings Movement explicitly embraces nonviolent and coalition building in its strategy and tactics. Echoing the example of the ultimately successful Americans Civil Rights Movement, this has encouraged more public citizen participation in both the rallies and surely the off year elections as well.
Political participation is contagious. Participation at rallies encourages participation in voting. November's Democratic victories suggest only an initial success in the ongoing struggle for reclaiming democracy in the United States. It does guarantee a recovery of state power in certain states and local governments, and with California's Prop 50 win, some leveling of the playing field for congressional races in 2026. But to resurrect the semblance of constitutional government with a balance of power between the executive and legislative branches, Democrats must regain the majority in the House or the Senate in the 2026 midterm elections. To do so will require that the No Kings social movement remains active; organizing and providing the political space for American citizens to exercise their First Amendment rights of freedom of speech and collective action. Some social science research suggests that just 3.5% of a country's population is required to overturn an authoritarian regime. That translates to approximately 12 million Americans in the streets. Clearly, more demonstrations will be necessary if Democrats are to regain power. This is Mike O'Loughlin.
