House Dems select new midterm slogan: ‘For the people’
House Democrats have agreed on a new campaign slogan ahead of the 2018 midterm elections, announcing it at a private meeting Wednesday.
Politico reports that party leaders chose the slogan “For the People” after a first try, “A Better Deal,” failed to resonate with voters.
“We have 110 days from right now until Election Day and we will be spending the month of August in our home districts and we wanted to make sure we are singing from the same song sheet on the three top issues,” Democratic messaging co-chair Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.) said.
“I don’t think any of us are claiming this is poetic or this is the end-all-be-all of messaging,” Bustos added. “It’s just a way, in a quick way, to put together the answer to what we stand for.”
{mosads}Bustos told Politico that that party also agreed upon three key issues upon which they will focus campaign messaging, issues that she says President Trump failed to deliver on his campaign promises in his first two years in office: infrastructure spending, prescription drug costs and healthcare and government corruption.
“Those are three promises that this president made to the American people that he has not kept. Sometimes you have to clearly and simply point out how we’re different,” Bustos said. “With discipline and not being distracted by the outrage of the day, that’s how people can start hearing us.”
She added that unlike their previous slogan, Democrats plan a more low-key launch for the campaign, focusing on the issues.
“We basically put it all on paper to say here are our top issues — they’re simple, they’re easy to understand,” Bustos said. “That’s how you break through this tweet machine coming out of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.”
House Democrats are hoping to pick up 23 seats to retake the lower chamber, while their counterparts in the Senate need a net gain of just two seats for a majority this fall. A recent poll put Democrats in the House at a 10-point lead over Republicans on a generic ballot heading in to November’s elections.