A Populist Moment: Why Democrats Need to Rethink Everything for 2026

We can win on a Populist message

This is Part 1 of my 2026 Strategy Guide for Winning in 2026

Back in my high-tech life, my name wasn’t Nancy. It was Strategygrrl.
My work emails? Strategygrrl.
User IDs? Strategygrrl.
My nickname for other women in tech? GRRL spelled exactly like that, because it was 1995, and we were making the internet up as we went along.

I was part of a 20-woman collective, the first women in the Austin web industry, building things no one had names for yet. My secret superpower? I pick up on trends early, understand why people do what they do, and can see the entire arc of a project from the spark of an idea to the moment you ship it.

I even have a graduate degree with a minor in usability studies, which is a fancy way of saying I understand how normal humans interact with technology and how people respond when they’re asked questions. Marketing and branding live in that same space of human behavior, so those skills just fused into my DNA.

All of that mattered the moment I founded Mothers in 2021, because one of the first things I realized was that the Texas Democratic Party had no strategy and no infrastructure. None. Zero. Zilch. It was like showing up to a fire and discovering everyone brought marshmallows.

Then Beto lost.
Then Dave Carney, Greg Abbott’s strategist, resident villain, and uncomfortably proud architect of GOP victories, went on the Y’allatics podcast and bragged about how he outsmarted Democrats and “defined” Beto.

Our team didn’t love hearing it, but we took notes. Know your enemy. Always.

And here’s what became obvious:

2021–2023: Democrats needed stronger border messaging.

2024: Democrats needed stronger border and economic messaging.

Both times? Republicans defined us before we even laced up our shoes.

Democrats were afraid to knock on doors.
Afraid to talk to people who disagreed with them.
Afraid to listen.
Afraid to meet voters where they are instead of lecturing them from a place of moral superiority.

I’ll never forget the Republican who called me right before the 2024 election. I braced for yelling. Instead, we had a respectful hour-long conversation. We didn’t agree on everything, but we listened. Imagine that listening works better than shouting.

After the 2024 loss and now with Trump back in office, I’ve spent a lot of time researching how Democrats can talk to voters in a way that actually lands. And here’s my conclusion:

Photo by Leo_Visions on Unsplash

Democrats need a populist message. A real one. A Democratic one.

We’re living in a time that looks uncomfortably similar to France before the French Revolution, a tiny group at the top taking more than their share while everyone else is told to tighten their belts. The moment is ripe for a message that speaks directly to working people.

The Core of Democratic Populism

Economic fairness: Wages, costs, jobs, corporate greed.
Community power: People over powerful interests.
Accountability: Hold the wealthy and the politicians serving them responsible.
Us vs. the rigged system: Not us vs. our neighbors.
Hope + fight: Things can get better, and we’re going to fight to make them better.

What This Sounds Like

• “The problem isn’t your neighbor. It’s the people at the top who keep writing the rules for themselves.”

• “Working families make Texas strong. Billionaires just make the rules.”

• “Nobody should work full-time and still be broke. That’s not freedom. That’s a rigged economy.”

• “Politicians love to blame immigrants, teachers, librarians, anyone handy. Funny how they never blame the corporations hiking your bills.”

• “We don’t need leaders who punch down. We need leaders who stand up for all of us.”

• “If you’re working hard and still falling behind, the problem isn’t you. It’s the system, and we’re here to fix it.”

Meanwhile, billionaires are collecting tax breaks like Pokémon cards while the middle class pays more for everything. And voters notice even if Democrats aren’t talking about it loudly enough.

So what should Democrats actually do?

1. Knock on the RIGHT doors.

Stop talking only to guaranteed Democrats.
Go find the swing voters, the sporadic voters, the people who never vote unless someone literally shows up and knocks.

2. Listen. Not lecture.

Ask questions.
Take notes.
Find out what hurts and matters to voters.
Your message begins where their pain point lives.

3. Tell voters what you’re for, not just what you’re against.

No one is inspired by negativity alone. Give them a reason to believe in you and a reason to vote.

4. Ask permission to follow up.

Leave information.
Send more later.
Build a real relationship.
You cannot win people you don’t stay in contact with.

5. Remember: the issues are the same across Texas.

Every candidate should focus on:

• Economy / Affordability / Raising the minimum wage

• Jobs

• Healthcare

• Safety

• Education

If you’re bored with your own stump speech, who cares? There is always one voter who hasn’t heard it yet. Say it 150 times in person. Say it four times a day online. That’s the job.

6. Stop fighting with Republicans on Twitter.

No voter has ever said, “Wow, that snarky tweet changed my life.”

7. Candidates without primary opponents: go find the voters who never vote.

They’re the ballgame.
Republicans are counting on them to stay home.
Give them a reason not to.

And let’s be honest: populist Democratic messaging works.

Door-knocking? In.
Postcards? Out.
Endless fundraising texts? You’ve given voters long-term emotional scarring. Enough.

Text people why they should vote, not why they should give.

Democrats lose when they whisper.
Democrats win when they show up, listen, and talk like they actually live in the same world as the voters they’re trying to represent.

This is our moment, and it’s a populist moment.
Let’s stop letting billionaires and political operatives define who we are.
Let’s define ourselves loudly, clearly, and right at the door.

It’s time to make the working class matter to Democrats again!
Yours in Resistance,

Nancy