Michigan doesn’t restrict primary ballots to registered affiliation. Anybody can vote in any one race, so changing my listed registration wouldn’t affect me the same way.
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WI has open primaries, so I’ve never been a registered democrat, nor have I ever considered myself one. I’ve always voted for them given the alternative. My opinion of the Democratic Party has trended negatively for a long time now. The embrace of transphobia by some of the party is quickly eroding any positive opinions that remain.
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If the Democrats are willing to throw one constituency under the bus for their own benefit, then who will they be willing to defend?!? 
(Not to mention the lack of effort to restore Roe protection for women, not fighting to maintain the Child Care Tax Credit and renters protections “post-Covid,” failing to back the Railroad Union’s strike efforts, etc.) The only thing they’ve accomplished by that is destroying trust and faith from many of the electorate, including me.
The “harm reduction/prevention” argument falls apart when Democrats engage in the same villification of LGBTQ+ and immigrants that the Republicans revel in, even if only on a smaller scale. It’s feeling more and more like, except in certain local/state races, voting Democrat is voting against my own interests. Hopefully, that will change in upcoming elections… we’ll see.
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You know what I would like to see become the norm? In both parties, really, but definitely in the Democratic Party? Primary challenges, even with popular and effective incumbents. Across the board. Governors, Representatives, Senators, and Presidents. Normalize someone mounting a serious challenge to them. Force them to defend their record, or adjust their policy positions if need be. Plus, give people an actual choice! If we would normalize this, we wouldn’t have had to worry about Biden running or not running, or dropping out sooner. Had there been a real challenger during the primary season, that would have exposed his problems soon enough for everyone, including maybe him, to say, “Ok, maybe it’s time to go.” Just normalize primary challenges and a lot of these problems go away, I think. Same with the age of our government. So many of these people should have retired already. Primary challengers might force their hand as they get older, instead of them just being able to stay in office as long as they’re alive, like Feinstein did.
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Alabama is the upside down of that. A couple Dems but mostly Repugnantcans running unopposed. The state Democratic Party is a mess of infighting, and of course there are racial undertones to that, it being Alabama. The national party organization ignores us. It’s a mess.
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Whitmer’s been pretty good for us (and that’s coming from someone who supported her primary challenger, El Sayed.) Ideologically, she’s no Bernie Sanders, but she and her crew have done a pretty decent job running the state these last few years. She can’t run for governor again because of term limits, so it will be interesting to see where she goes after this.
Edit to add: I apparently missed the news that’s she’s been talking with and cozying up to Trump these last couple of months, and teh googlez confirms it.
Well, damn. I retract anything good I’ve said about her.
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It might have been suggested upthread - but the power(cult) of personality doesn’t seem to be diminishing in current times.
So - having good ideas, platforms, legislative success etc still seems merely complementary to the importance of the right person, the right leader.
The person/people who can best get and hold the attention of the electorate, communicate and alter perspectives. You could argue Team Trump has been very effective at this both nationally and abroad (witness the rise of right wing elsewhere). We need Bernie 2.0 - a charismatic, intelligent, bigger than life personality who will stand against MAGA/oligarchy/oppression etc etc.
But who?
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Not sure if this comes from pessimism or depression, but it seems Il Douche managed to harness the long-simmering racist, sexist, omniphobic strain in our country to the service of the oligarchy. This has been around since the founding of our country. Is there an equivalent tide that could be turned to our purposes? Something like Liberté, égalité, fraternité only not so foreign-sounding. I am not at all sure there is. We were ready to embrace fascism back in the '20s and 30’s, right up until Pearl Harbor. I am not terribly hopeful. Someone talk me off the ledge!
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It’s been done before and can be done again.
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It still sucks, but Senator King isn’t a Democrat. He’s an Independent who caucuses with the Democrats, but he’s not a member of the party. Fetterman doesn’t surprise me at all. I’m hugely disappointed in Kaine and Klobuchar.
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I’m sorry, disgusted and frightened that I cannot Heart your comment.
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