The Democratic National Committee just buried a 300-interview autopsy report that could explain why they lost everything in 2024, and the party’s elites think you’re better off not knowing what went wrong.
The Broken Promise That Protects the Establishment
Ken Martin won the DNC chairmanship in February 2025 with an explicit pledge to conduct and publicly release a thorough examination of the party’s 2024 electoral disaster. Democrats had surrendered unified control of government, watching Kamala Harris lose to Donald Trump after Joe Biden’s belated exit from the race. Martin positioned transparency as essential to rebuilding trust and competence. Yet ten months later, he reversed course entirely. His new standard became ruthlessly transactional: Does releasing this report help Democrats win in 2026? When he decided the answer was no, he classified the findings as an internal document only.
What the Party Doesn’t Want You to Know
Leaked excerpts from Politico reveal the report criticized outdated data infrastructure and called for modernizing relational organizing strategies, issues that directly implicate the consultant class that profits from Democratic campaigns. The document apparently highlighted how Republicans dominated young voters through superior online engagement while Democrats floundered with messaging. These are systemic failures that transcend any single candidate, yet the findings remain locked away from the voters who fund and support the party. The DNC conducted these 300 interviews, compiled institutional knowledge about what went catastrophically wrong, then decided the American people shouldn’t see it.
The Consultants Circle the Wagons
Anonymous Democratic consultants quietly supported Martin’s decision, arguing it would prevent damaging infighting before crucial midterm elections. They framed transparency as self-indulgent navel-gazing when the party should focus on Trump’s declining approval ratings and kitchen-table economics. This logic conveniently ignores that the 2016 autopsy also never saw full public release, establishing a pattern where Democratic insiders investigate themselves and decline to share conclusions. The consulting firms that designed the failed 2024 strategy escape public scrutiny while positioning themselves for 2026 and 2028 contracts. It’s the ultimate accountability dodge dressed up as electoral pragmatism.
The Critics Speak What Leadership Won’t
Rebecca Katz, who advised Senator-elect Ruben Gallego, asked the obvious question: How can Democrats learn without knowing their mistakes? Lis Smith, who consulted for Pete Buttigieg, went further by arguing that the very reasons for hiding the report prove why it should be released. Jon Favreau of Pod Save America accused the DNC of fearing that an informed public would damage their electoral chances, a stunning admission that party leaders view voter awareness as a liability. Even Jeff Weaver, who worked with Bernie Sanders, called the decision cowardly. These aren’t Republican operatives or conservative critics. These are Democratic strategists who recognize that burying hard truths guarantees repeating expensive failures.
The Gaza Blame Game That Never Happened
Despite the article premise suggesting Gaza policy received blame in the autopsy, no source material supports this claim. The report apparently focused on data operations, voter outreach deficiencies, Biden’s age as a factor, and the condensed 107-day timeline after his withdrawal. Foreign policy questions don’t appear in any leaked excerpts or stakeholder descriptions. Harris faced political headwinds before Martin shelved the report, stemming from her role in an unpopular administration and the unprecedented circumstances of replacing a sitting president mere months before Election Day. Sources close to Harris deny she requested the report be withheld, though the non-release undeniably shields her from detailed scrutiny as she potentially positions for 2028.
What Transparency Actually Requires
The DNC now claims it will implement the autopsy findings internally while keeping specifics confidential. This arrangement allows leadership to cherry-pick convenient recommendations while ignoring uncomfortable conclusions about who failed and why. Voters cannot evaluate whether proposed reforms address actual problems without seeing the diagnosis. Down-ballot candidates preparing for 2026 cannot learn from documented mistakes. The next generation of Democratic leaders cannot challenge entrenched consultants without evidence of their failures. Martin points to recent off-year victories in Virginia and New Jersey as proof Democrats should stop dwelling on 2024, but winning scattered state races against a historically unpopular president hardly compensates for losing the entire federal government.
The Pattern That Predicts Future Defeats
This marks the second consecutive presidential loss without full public accounting. The 2016 autopsy remained largely internal, Martin himself acknowledged during his chair campaign. Democratic voters funded these campaigns, knocked doors, made calls, and donated billions of dollars. They deserve honest explanations when those investments yield catastrophic results. Instead, the party offers them carefully curated talking points about affordability messaging and instructions to focus forward. Quinnipiac polling shows Congress approval at just 18 percent compared to 35 percent for Republicans, suggesting voters see through the spin. Without genuine accountability, Democrats seem determined to repeat 2024’s failures in future cycles while consultants collect fees and insiders avoid blame.
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DNC scraps 2024 autopsy report – Campaigns & Elections