DNC AUTOPSY TOO MODERATE TO HANDLE
Buried report explicitly invoked 1989 centrist movement, blames identity politics
May 21 2026 – After months of speculation, today’s revelation of the Democratic National Committee’s 2024 postmortem reveals a surprising truth: the report is filled with recommendations that the party move to the center, making controversial claims for a party that is now majority-liberal and heavily influenced by progressive advocacy groups. Many of the findings validate our Deciding to Win report, the defining autopsy for the party.
1. Explicitly invokes the 1989 course correction led by moderate and conservative Democrats to “reclaim the vital center” and be “less about race” and less about “pie-in-the-sky narratives.” Page 8
In 1989, after losing three straight presidential campaigns, our party refocused the conversation around policy and purpose to reclaim the vital center of American discourse. Understanding the center is where most people live, then-DNC Chairman Ron Brown led Democrats out of the political wilderness by supporting candidates putting people first, prioritizing the economy, and offering America hope. It was Ron Brown who understood every corner of America was hurting and proclaimed his tenure would be less about race and more about “the races we win.” Ron Brown also challenged the Democratic Party to think and be different. He focused less on pie-in-the-sky narratives and asked the party to “get real about the politics of success.”
2. Called for more separation from Biden on immigration. Page 72
The report elevates pollster concerns that Kamala Harris needed “breaks” with the Biden Administration to win, and that “attempted differentiation on immigration” was “too little, too late.
3. Cited a rejection of “identity politics” as key factor for successful candidates in case studies on North Carolina, Arizona, and Nevada. Page 22; Page 38
Stein’s pathway to victory, in contrast, should encourage others to do the same: focus less on abstract issues and identity politics, and connect with voters on the issues they say matter most, including the economy
Successful candidates like Gallego and Rosen showed how year-round presence, economic messaging, and addressing cost-of-living concerns resonate more than identity politics.
Welcome co-founder Liam Kerr: “The DNC report, titled Build to Win, echoes many of the themes of Welcome’s Deciding To Win postmortem and upcoming WelcomeFest, the largest annual gathering of centrists themed Building to Win. The echoes may have been too loud.
“Most Democrats now admit voters distrust the party on both cultural issues and the basics of government, like immigration and public safety,” said Welcome co-founder Liam Kerr. “But most won’t admit that voters have good reason not to trust the party: Democrats ran to the left on every measure since 2012, from bill sponsorship to the party platform. Voters noticed, and didn’t like it. That’s the key takeaway from Deciding to Win, and possibly a reason the DNC’s own autopsy was not released.”
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About Welcome
In the 2022 and 2024 election cycles combined, Welcome invested more than $14 million supporting a dozen of the Democratic Party’s most over-performing U.S. House challengers and incumbents. Informed by our perspective on the inefficiency of the Democratic marketplace and the ballooning value of each Congressional seat, Welcome has consistently identified districts with viability that rating agencies have written off as unwinnable for Democrats. In 2024, Welcome supported a slate of nine centrist Democrats, including the Blue Dog caucus co-chairs. All of Welcome’s slate over-performed Kamala Harris in Trump-won districts by an average of 6 points.
Welcome was coined “a centrist insurgency” by The New York Times and has been featured in publications like PBS, Slate, Semafor, Politico, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, Slow Boring, and The Bulwark.
Welcome cultivates a centrist community and elevates Democratic Party leaders who improve the brand through its annual public gathering, WelcomeFest, and its Substack, WelcomeStack.