As liberal voters become increasingly frustrated by their leaders’ response to the Trump presidency, a crop of young Democrats is attempting to direct that anger at longtime members of Congress.
“What if we didn’t suck?” Kat Abughazaleh, who’s primarying Illinois Rep. Jan Schakowsky, asks in her launch video.
“If you want to know why we Democrats are so bad at fighting back against Trump, look at guys like my former boss,” former California Rep. Brad Sherman staffer Jake Rakov tells the camera.
“Why would we double down on the same people who got us into this mess?” asks George Hornedo, who just launched a challenge to Indiana Rep. Andre Carson.
Some challengers are explicitly running to the incumbents’ left, while others appear to have few ideological differences with their opponents. In most cases, frustration with Democrats’ inaction is exacerbated by these members’ long tenure and advanced age. Democrats currently make up a majority of the oldest members in the House — 55 of the 85 lawmakers in their 70s and 80s.
But ousting an incumbent in a primary is no
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