Newsom blames Democrats’ own performance for losing rural and red-state support

Governor Gavin Newsom, speaking on a Southern swing through Alabama, South Carolina and North Carolina, warned that Democrats’ biggest flaw is their own performance, not Republican messaging or map disadvantages. He said the party stopped campaigning in rural and Republican-controlled states, narrowed its coalition with internal purity tests, and abandoned the “big tent” identity. Referring to the 2010 midterm losses, Newsom cited Republican strategist Karl Rove’s focus on down-ballot races as a model Democrats ignored.

He stressed that time and presence are free resources Democrats can afford to rebuild local infrastructure. Voices such as strategist Garry South and Georgia podcaster David McLaughlin agreed that sustained grassroots work, even without winning every county, can improve margins, citing Raphael Warnock’s 2022 Senate win as an example. Newsom’s critique also linked the party’s shift toward presidential-centric politics after Barack Obama’s rise to a neglect of state-level organization.