The Democrats’ Tea Party Moment?
It’s written in the textbooks & the stars
For 5 years, I’ve been arguing this day was coming. In 2020, I remember going on a walk with my boyfriend at the time, telling him that the Democratic party’s MAGA moment, hell their Tea Party moment was coming by 2026 (guess I sensed Pluto in Aquarius before I knew what to look for).
I reasoned with him that because Democrats in this current form were a younger party, they were at least a few years, if not a decade, behind the Republican Party. He didn’t buy into it, but I didn’t care, I knew I was onto something. And here we possibly are.
Zohran Mamdani ran a historic mayoral campaign; as a proud Democratic socialist; as a pro-Palestine candidate; against a Democratic stalwart who poured tens of millions of dollars into racist attack ads against him, who national Democrats around the country raced to endorse despite their prior misgivings/disparagements; who had deep name recognition, and, at one point was polling 30-points ahead.
It didn’t f*cking matter.
Nothing, not fear, not cynicism, not wealth, nor disbelief could stymie the hope that surged when people saw a new path forward. Something that has only been offered to them through the presidential candidacy of Bernie Sanders, though even that felt far different.
This was a people-powered campaign, the likes of whom turned out in droves, crashing volunteer records, and smashing voter turnout for a mayoral race. And while, yes, he still has a general election to go, it’s not looking like momentum is going anywhere.
The Tea Party was a movement that arose in response to the government spending policies of Barack Obama, to the corporate bailouts following the 2008 financial crisis. This was “not a Republican or Democratic issue, but one of civil liberties.” The movement began with a series of protests around the national. The moment was marked by the sudden flooding of shouting crowds at town halls, meetings lawmakers were “accustomed to scheduling where no one would show up.”
Sound familiar?
The anger of the Tea Party prompted supporters to start primarying the Republican establishment. They ran candidates in state, local, and federal offices to varying degrees. In 2010, the Tea Party “rocked the Republican Party” sweeping primary victories across the nation and decisively winning the congressional midterms. If you need to put a face to the movement, think Sarah Palin, Ted Cruz, and Marco Rubio for starters.
But by 2016, those Tea Party people had become too establishment for the likes of MAGA. Remember that, once upon a time, MAGA was considered by many to be a fringe movement with little momentum. Donald Trump wasn’t initially regarded as a serious candidate when compared to Republican name brands like Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, and Ted Cruz.
But MAGA turned out and their passion led to the rise and victory of Donald Trump. A man who, in one decade, has single-handedly reshaped the entire ethos of the Republican Party.
Democrats haven’t had that. There have been a few progressives here and there to successfully the mainstream candidate, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez (D-NY) being the most infamous, but, for the most part the establishment Democrats’ blue wall has remained steadfast. Their commitment to obstinance has led to repeated losses, intraparty frustrations, and confusion amongst supporters.
Somewhere along the way, the party of change became resistant to change. The party of the working class became the party of the coastal, smug elites. Democrats have been told time and time again from their leadership that actually progressive policies don’t win elections. That appealing to moderate Republicans was the only path forward.
Last night, Democratic voters rebuked that notion and proverbially shoved it up the establishment party’s ass.
This must have been how MAGA felt when Trump beat out a crowded field to win the 2016 primary.
A symbol of hope for a new direction away from the old guard. The feeling that votes do matter, and that elections can’t always be bought.
I don’t typically speak out about elections, but I did about this one. Why? When I’m not even a New Yorker yet? Because this election felt like the first opportunity to begin to move the needle. It felt like a way to challenge a Democratic party who seemingly picks the candidates for voters versus the other way around.
If you want my analysis, watch my video below, but Andrew Cuomo was a disgraced candidate.
Apart from the eleven women accusing him of sexual assault, which therefore led to his resignation as governor, he fudged COVID numbers to fit his narrative, and is charged with causing the deaths of several elderly people during the pandemic. We know that he used tax payer dollars for his legal defense fund, we know that he misused campaign and city funds for personal gain. We know that he’s got a reputation for threatening and bribing people to get what he wants.
We know all this, and yet, Democratic stalwarts all over the nation, came out in support of him. A man who they disparaged and demanded to resign as governor in 2022. Now stood behind him as their preferred candidate.
There is something deeply wrong with that.
Then the New York Times editorial board ran their anti-endorsement of Mamdani, neglecting to properly endorse Cuomo, but making it clear he was their preferred option.
Then the slander started, the racist anti-campaigns hinging on the Islamophobia ever present since 2001 trying to scare voters away by darkening Mamdani’s skin and lengthening his beard. The lobbed accusations that, because he’s anti-genocide, he’s antisemitic.
Frankly, this was what got me publicly involved. Last week, I saw an influencer I follow on Instagram, posting straight up disinformation about Mamdani to her 1 million followers. I felt compelled to speak up and speak out. Wasn’t quite the same reach, but I did have 50,000 people watch the video with ~7,500 likes & 650 comments. Numbers that don’t mean anything tbh until you look at the race Eric Adams won and see he won by 7,000 votes only.
I fought with people in the comments, who said Cuomo had it in the bag. Who said that this couldn’t change the calculus of the Democratic Party. Who espoused certain antisemitic narratives. I didn’t endorse a candidate, but I did oppose Cuomo.
I try to stay the course when it comes to politics. I call stuff out, but I seek to remain objective in my analysis. In this case, I did the research but was not going to be objective in the reporting. No statusCuomo, as someone in my comments smartly coined.
Throughout the entire race, Cuomo thought he had it in the bag. He never answered to any of the accusations and kept his public appearances tight. He thought he could coast on name and experience only. Honestly, most people thought he could. Cuomo has never lost an election.
Until now.
Cuomo didn’t even wait to find out the ranked choice numbers, he just resigned. It wasn’t even close.
As excited as many are, there are some scared about what Mamdani, a democratic socialist, leading NYC might mean. And that’s fair, it’s an experiment we haven’t tried here. It could very well fail. But isn’t that better than doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result? That, as Einstein noted, is the definition of insanity.
Democrats are at the same inflection point Republicans have now faced twice in the last nearly two decades. Listen to your voters, or lose elections. Embrace new viewpoints and positions, or enrage your supporters.
I don’t envy them at all. But it has to happen. It’s written in the textbooks, and the stars. Democrats became the party they are today after the Southern Democrats left the party in favor of Republicans during the civil rights era. And they’ve been that party ever since. But we live in a different time now, with different technologies, beliefs, skill sets, opportunities, etc. Wouldn’t it make sense that as people evolve, the party would too?
Republicans saw this, and got it, and that’s what wins them elections and excites their base. Democrats have been stubborn asses…fitting since their symbol is a donkey.
So now, the party has a choice. Continue to resist and try to outraise/stymie the candidates who inspire people to turn out in favor of the “safe” choices? Or embrace the various wings of the party, and make way for the New Guard? Of people-powered campaigns?
The clock’s ticking. 2026 is just around the corner.
Astrological breakdown— if you’re interested
Of course there’s some crazy ass astrology attached to this which I just looooove.
First we have to look at Pluto, the planet of power, politics, and permanent transformation. Pluto entered Capricorn (the sign of government, institutions, leadership) in 2008. When Pluto enters a sign, it is seeking to permanently restructure everything to do with that sign. It is saying that whatever exists isn’t working. In this example, seemingly it was political parties.
We saw a glimpse of a potential new Democratic Party by way of Barack Obama, catalyzing change. But Obama was seemingly too entrenched in the system and didn’t have the ability to change the system. We saw it again with Bernie Sanders’ candidacy. He certainly left his mark on the Democratic Party and allowed for a new wave of progressivism to take shape, but it was hardly mainstream, certainly not a part of traditional leadership, which Capricorn expects.
Republicans on the other hand, quickly entrenched their new beliefs into the system by way of the Tea Party Revolution and then MAGA. By the time Pluto in Aquarius (the sign of people-powered, humanitarian, innovation) hit, the Republican Party looked like a brand new party.
Democrats meanwhile had missed their opportunity (I do always say Democrats never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity). By the time Pluto in Aquarius hit, they looked like the same party they had in 2008, even before. Then, Pluto retrograded back into Capricorn just in time for the November 2024 election, I wondered what it would mean. I did a whole post on it.
What I’ve since realized is Republicans understood the assignment, and Democrats didn’t. Which set them up for success in 2024.
Now, Democrats are facing their own reckoning. This time, it’s not through leadership (Capricorn), it’s through people-powered campaigns and candidates (Aquarius). Much like Republicans saw from 2008-2024, the next two decades for the Democrats are going to be revolutionary in a permanent way.
And it seems like Zohran Mamdani might be leading the way.