The majority of Democrats say that the party needs new leadership and to stop focusing on topics such as gender issues, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll. The poll found that there is a large disconnect between what average Democrats care about and their perception of the party leadership.
According to the poll, the party's base does not think that the Democratic politicians care about helping families make ends meet or the influence of business in the US, two large priorities found in the poll.
Since their loss to President Donald Trump in November, there appears to be some work to do in order to find new leaders in the party. 62 percent of self-identified Democrats in the poll agreed that "the leadership of the Democratic Party should be replaced with new people."
Only 24 percent of Democrats disagreed with the statement. When the question was asked to Republicans, only 30 percent said that the GOP needs new leadership. Leadership for the Democrats in the Democratic National Committee is also in disarray after the ouster of gun control activist David Hogg, as well as the resignation of Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten from her DNC membership.
Additionally, the Democrats who took the survey said that there is an overemphasis on issues they view as a lower priority, such as trans issues. Only 17 percent of Democrats in the poll said that getting men to play in women's sports was a priority for them, however, 28 percent of Democrats in the poll said they thought party leadership was making it a high priority.
“There are more important things to be moving the needle on,” Benjamin Villagomez, who identifies as transgender, said. “There are more pressing issues, things that actually matter to people’s livelihoods."
Economic issues appeared to be where those in the poll said party leaders have been the most lacking. 86 percent of Democrats said that taxes on the wealthy need to be a high priority, while in the poll, only 72 percent of Democrats thought their party leaders saw that as a priority.
Dissatisfaction with the leadership in the party was particularly emphasized among younger Democrat voters between the ages of 18 and 39.
Issues where younger Democrats thought there was a gap between how much the party leadership cares and how much they care themselves about a topic included universal healthcare, raising taxes on the rich, paid family leave, and limiting money in politics.
