Blitz Bureau
WASHINGTON: Ken Martin, the newly installed chair of the Democratic National Committee, was set to kick off his first major trip as party leader in an effort for the organisation to “get out of DC”, said an NBC News report. Martin’s trip will bring him to key swing states including Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, the blue state of Illinois and two red states, Texas and Missouri, according to details of the trip shared with NBC News.
The stops on the trip will include a meeting with the United Steelworkers in Pittsburgh, meetings with the state Democratic Party chairs in Illinois and Missouri, and door-knocking for Democratic state House candidate Dan Goughnour ahead of his March special election outside of Pittsburgh.
“It’s time for the DNC to get out of DC – that means getting out of our comfort zone, having tough but honest conversations with voters, and showing that we’re willing to fight for people. Democrats will win by organising everywhere, competing across the ballot in every community, and uniting working families from all backgrounds,” Martin told NBC News in a statement.
He went on to criticise President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, arguing they have a plan to “give trillions of dollars to billionaires by cutting things like healthcare for kids, seniors and rural communities – and we can’t let that happen.”
“It’s time for Democrats to show up in all 3,244 counties – red, purple, blue – to make our case,” Martin added. Martin won the chairmanship earlier this month at the DNC’s winter meeting, after more than a decade as the leader of Minnesota’s state Democratic-Farmer-Labour Party. He has also held senior roles within the national party apparatus during that time.
Throughout his campaign to lead the party, Martin pitched his vision for the DNC chair as multifaceted – helping build out the party’s infrastructure across the country and US territories, embarking on a “post-election review,” bringing the party’s message to new outlets through new messengers, and also going on offence against Trump and his policies.
