Pro-democracy momentum is real!

Democratic opposition is stronger this time around

“Don’t let this be another day in America,” Senator Cory Booker insisted. Well, it wasn’t. Yesterday was a soaring day for the momentum of the Democratic party, culminating in an overwhelming win for Justice Susan Crawford in Wisconsin, thereby delivering a crucial and symbolic referendum on Elon Musk, President Trump, and anybody else who might believe that our democracy can be bought. So, what now?

Democrats would dearly love to repeat their success from 2017 through 2020. Step by step, in the wake of Donald Trump’s first presidential election, they strung together a series of mass events, legislative maneuvers, and electoral wins, culminating in a Democratic trifecta (White House, House, and Senate) victory in 2020. That experience contains five important lessons for their ability to mount a comeback leading up to and through the 2028 elections.

First, the movement in 2017 was a bottom-up affair. From the Women’s March to spontaneous demonstrations at airports against the Muslim Ban to the March for Our Lives, citizen-driven mass engagement pushed Democrats to hold the line, while knitting together a determined, winning coalition.

The perception that there has been less activism in 2025 is simply wrong, a function of lazy and shuttered corporate- and billionaire journalism. The Harvard Crowd Counting Consortium noted that in 2025 “our research shows that street protests today are far more numerous and frequent than skeptics might suggest.” In fact, “since 22 January, we’ve seen more than twice as many street protests than took place during the same period eight years ago.”

The researchers also found that coordinated days of protest—such as March Fourth for Democracy (4 March), Stand Up for Science (7 March), rallies in recognition of International Women’s Day (8 March) and protests demanding the release of the Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil suggest little likelihood of these actions slowing down. These are all occurring in the background of a tidal wave of lawsuits challenging the Trump administration’s early moves.

In 2017, protestors swarmed GOP town halls and Republican politicians’ offices to protest the attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act. This year, we’ve seen that the turnout at town halls (whether in districts where Republican officeholders were hiding or Democratic districts where crowds rallied) has been consistently robust. Looking ahead to April 5 and then to May 1 (when organized labor will lead more protests), mass movements can sustain the same energy that is essential for political success.

These are more than feel-good events. Those who engage in some sort of public demonstration are far more likely to vote and participate in other political activity (e.g., volunteering or donating to a campaign), especially among younger voters.

Second, increasing the number of Democrats vying for office raises the chances of interest and success in midterm elections. This year in Virginia, for example, “Virginia Democrats are seizing the moment, launching campaigns in 92 of the 100 House of Delegates districts, a number that is set to grow in the coming weeks before the April 3 filing deadline for the June 17 statewide primary elections.” Compare that to the puny showing among Republicans who are running candidates “in just 63 districts and are only challenging Democrats in 13 of the 51 seats that Democrats currently hold.”

That bodes well for a repeat of 2017 when “Democrats flipped 15 House seats, dismantled a Republican supermajority, and came within a single disputed ballot and a random drawing of achieving a 50-50 split in the chamber.”

Third, autocrats who suffer early losses lose the aura of invincibility, undermine morale among supporters, and fuel more enthusiasm among opponents. In 2017, the big Democratic win was the defeat of the ACA repeal, a phenomenal achievement considering the GOP trifecta in place. This year the wins are coming consistently in courts, and now—to the delight, triumph, and relief of Democrats—in the critical Wisconsin supreme court race.

As we have noted, Trump is losing a lot. Constitutional scholar Steve Vladeck found that out of 67 identified court cases challenging Trump actions, “district courts have granted some type of preliminary relief in 46 of those 67 cases (68.7%).” The wins are all the more impressive given that the “67 rulings have come from 51 different district judges appointed by seven different presidents sitting in 14 different district courts across eight circuits.” The favorable rulings have come from “39 different judges appointed by five different presidents and sitting in 11 different district courts across seven circuits.”

Fourth, midterms and special elections matter. Victories in 2017 in New Jersey and Virginia as well as a special election in the Alabama Senate race (won by Doug Jones) paved the way for the midterm wins. This year, Democrats can build on wins in the Pennsylvania state senate race, Wisconsin, and the New Jersey and Virginia gubernatorial and legislative races.

Fifth, it is a misnomer that the party out of power needs a “positive” message before the presidential race. From 2017-2020 Democrats’ message was almost entirely about preventing Trump assaults on healthcare, immigration, democracy, etc. The April 5 protests’ “Hand Off” carries the same ethos, namely, “Whose country is it—Musk/Trump’s or the people’s?” As Trump’s approval sinks, this will provide cohesion and widespread appeal for Democrats.

Democrats and their pro-democracy allies have two more advantages not present in 2017-2020. For one thing, absent any adults in the room to restrain him, the full fury and harm Trump has inflicted on Americans (from benefit cuts to mass layoffs to tariffs) have hit home more quickly and powerfully than in the previous Trump term. And finally, Democrats have an ideal villain in the creepy billionaire Elon Musk who supplies a daily supply of outrageous gestures, vile comments, and incessant efforts to corrupt our democratic system.

Past political history does not guarantee future results. However, pro-democracy forces (to say nothing of the phenomenal activism exhibited last night by Senator Cory Booker, who held court on the Senate floor for 25 hours), are laying the building blocks brick by brick to halt and dislodge the MAGA menace. It will be up to Democrats and their allies to continue the momentum if we are to oust Trump and his authoritarian cohorts.