Learning from Loss The Democrats, 2016–2020

The Democrats' decision to nominate Joe Biden for 2020 was hardly a fluke but rather a strategic choice by a party that had elevated electability above all other concerns. In Learning from Loss, one of the nation's leading political analysts offers unique insight into the Democratic Party at a moment of uncertainty. Between 2017 and 2020, Seth Masket spoke with Democratic Party activists and followed the behavior of party leaders and donors to learn how the party was interpreting the 2016 election and thinking about a nominee for 2020. Masket traces the persistence of party factions and shows how interpretations of 2016 shaped strategic choices for 2020. Although diverse narratives emerged to explain defeat in 2016 - ranging from a focus on 'identity politics' to concerns about Clinton as a flawed candidate - these narratives collectively cleared the path for Biden.

1. When the fools were right; 2. What we know about identity, ideology, and electability, and what we don't; 3. Interpreting loss; 4. When parties try to fix themselves; 5. The persistence of faction; 6. How narrative changes voters; 7. The invisible primary becomes visible.

Seth Masket is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Center on American Politics at the University of Denver. Masket writes regularly for Mischiefs of Faction and FiveThirtyEight. His work has also appeared in Politico, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the Washington Post's Monkey Cage. He is the author of The Inevitable Party: Why Attempts to Kill the Party System Fail and How They Weaken Democracy (2016) and No Middle Ground: How Informal Party Organizations Control Nominations and Polarize Legislatures (2009).