The Democratic National Committee has released, more than a year after the 2024 presidential election, a 192‑page internal autopsy that details the party's weaknesses in losing both the White House and several key congressional contests, a report whose publication was abruptly halted by party chairman Ken Martin in December 2024.
The document, authored by outside Democratic consultant Paul Rivera and provisionally titled "BUILD TO WIN. BUILD TO LAST," was first commissioned in early 2025 to interview hundreds of party operatives across all 50 states and to analyze campaign data, polling, and messaging failures that contributed to Kamala Harris's defeat by Donald Trump.
It now includes a red‑lined disclaimer on every page stating that it reflects the author's views, not the DNC's, and that the committee cannot independently verify many of the claims because it was never given underlying interview transcripts or datasets, according to NBC News.
Martin initially promised the report would be made public in January 2025, arguing that the party needed transparency after past failures to release its 2016 postmortem.
In December 2024, he abruptly canceled the planned release, telling senior staff he feared the raw, unfinished draft would distract from the party's midterm messaging and fundraising efforts for the 2026 cycle.
By May 2026, pressure from state parties, Democratic governors, and major donors had turned the stalled report into a leadership liability, and Martin relented and published the full, unedited version on the DNC's website and social platforms.
In an accompanying Substack post, he conceded that by trying to avoid a short‑term distraction, he instead created a larger, longer‑running controversy and that the report "does not meet my standards" for a finished, evidence‑backed analysis.
Among the more pointed findings, the autopsy argues that Harris ran a campaign that underinvested in rural and Midwestern states, failed to sustain negative advertising against Trump, and offered voters limited clarity on tangible economic promises beyond broad "Bidenomics" talking points.
It also criticizes the Biden‑Harris campaign structure for not preparing Harris to carry the same policy and political weight as an incumbent president, especially in swing states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin.
The report highlights polling and internal data showing that pro‑Trump ads tying Harris to specific cultural issues, such as a controversial clip misrepresenting her stance on transgender prisoners' healthcare, significantly cut into her support among suburban women and working‑class voters, PBS reported.
It adds that the Democratic National Committee's fundraising apparatus underperformed in 2024, with the party relying too heavily on high‑dollar donors and digital micro‑donations while neglecting mid‑size recurring contributors.
Some sections of the report remain blank or incomplete, including a missing executive summary and a truncated conclusion, which the DNC notes in marginal annotations that question the reliability of the analytical framework.
Multiple Democratic operatives, speaking on background, told reporters they were disappointed that the much‑hyped "autopsy" offered more political platitudes and structural complaints than concrete, implementable reforms.
Despite the messy rollout, several party leaders said the document still provides a baseline for internal debates over nominee caliber, down‑ballot messaging, and how to rebuild the Democratic coalition ahead of 2028.
As the DNC prepares to vote on whether Martin will remain chairman through the next presidential cycle, the released autopsy is now seen as both a record of past failures and a political weapon for his rivals, as per The Hill.
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