Broad Overview of Class Dealignment

For a general overview of the evidence for dealignment and a survey of the most prominent approaches to understanding how it can be addressed, start with my essay “Class Dealignment Is the Defining Political Challenge of Our Time.” If you are interested in the specific question of dealignment among voters without a four-year college degree, you can find a short summary in “A Matter of Degrees.”

The Importance of Economic Populism

One key solution for reversing class dealignment is for progressives to double down on economic populism. “Democrats who attack the rich do better in elections” summarizes research from Jacobin and the CWCP demonstrating that Democratic candidates who run on economic populism do better with working-class voters than those who do not. “A Populism of the Left Can Realign American Politics” draws similar conclusions, this time based on a unique experiment of hypothetical Democratic candidates from Jacobin and the CWCP.

Additionally, some important data from Pennsylvania in recent years underscores the vital importance of economic policies that directly target working-class interests. The shift of working-class voters toward Trump demonstrates a need for the Left to embrace populist rhetoric that prioritizes labor and everyday people’s needs.

Connecting With Working-Class Voters

But it’s not just about policy; it’s also about messaging. Democrats have struggled to speak in a way that resonates with working-class voters. “Why Do So Many Workers Love Trump?” explains how Trump’s 2016 rhetoric effectively tapped into working-class anxieties around job loss and economic insecurity. In turn, “Democrats Aren’t Campaigning to Win the Working Class” and “A Difficult Road Ahead” summarize Jacobin/CWCP research showing that Democratic candidates are simply not campaigning to win working-class votes.

In addition, the Jacobin/CWCP report “Commonsense Solidarity” provides experimental evidence showing that progressive candidates are more effective with working-class voters when they avoid alienating, academic-inspired campaign messaging and focus instead on bread-and-butter economic concerns.

You can find a summary of key report findings in “What Moves Swing Voters” and a summary of additional experimental findings from Jacobin/CWCP on how to message most effectively to working-class voters in “How Democrats Can Win Workers.”

We Need Working-Class Candidates

Another crucial aspect of winning back working-class voters is running candidates who are relatable to working-class voters, especially candidates with a working-class background themselves. It’s vital that Democrats run candidates who understand and represent the working class.

“The Case for Running Working-Class Candidates” describes just how few working-class candidates run for office in the United States and why that’s a problem, while “Do Working-class candidates activate class-based voting?” provides experimental evidence based on a Jacobin/CWCP survey that working-class candidates are viewed more favorably by working-class voters than other candidates.

Building Left/Working-Class Power to Combat Dealignment

Building a durable working-class majority will not happen through elections alone — it also requires a revitalized labor movement that can build worker power to challenge decades of corporate dominance. “Organizing the Void” describes how the weakening of social democratic parties and trade unions over the past several decades has made the frontal assault on neoliberalism we need to win back the trust of the working-class increasingly difficult.

“Why We Need Union Halls in Every Town” similarly pinpoints the decline of unions in postindustrial America at the center of the story for understanding the rise of Trumpism, and, “Uphill Battle” lays out the severe strategic challenges US progressives face in ever delivering transformative pro-worker reforms.

International Perspectives on Dealignment

Class dealignment is not just a problem in the United States; it’s a global phenomenon. “Taking Back Left Parties from the Brahmins” lays out the international landscape of class dealignment and gives insights into countries that have been more successful than others at stopping it, and “Chile’s Vote Was a Rebuke of the 21st-Century Left. Will We Listen?” offers insights into the Left’s strategic difficulties in building a progressive working-class majority in Chile.

Where Class Dealignment Stands After the 2024 Election

While it’s too soon to know exactly how bad things went for the Democrats with working-class voters, “The Working Class Has Left the Building” gives a rundown of the best available initial postelection data, and “Two Simple Lessons for Democrats to Win the Working Class” makes the case, based on a preelection Jacobin/CWCP survey of Pennsylvania voters, that Harris might have done better in key swing states if she had pivoted to a robust economic-populist messaging style.