THE WORKING CLASS PROJECT: 2025 REPORT
A Letter From Mitch Landrieu, Democracy Matters and American Bridge 21st Century Co-chair
For too many working folks in this country, the American Dream – if you work hard and play by the rules, you can have a comfortable life and a brighter future for your kids – feels more like a fairy tale from long ago. They’re understandably angry about it. And when they went to vote in the 2024 presidential election, a lot of working-class people – of all races – didn’t think Democrats cared about them, respected them, reflected them, or had a plan to help them. So they voted for Donald Trump and the Republican Party, some for the first time ever.
Democrats have to win back the support of the working class, including men and working folks in places we haven’t been competitive, such as the South and the Heartland. If we don’t, our governing coalition may well cease to exist. And we can’t earn working-class votes without listening to and learning from them.
That’s why we launched the Working Class Project – the biggest and most extensive working-class research investment in the Democratic Party. Our new report, which you can download below, discusses what we learned over the last nine months, as we conducted dozens of focus groups and roundtables, surveys, an in-depth study of media consumption habits, and other qualitative and quantitative research across 21 states.
What we found wasn’t always pretty: I’m a proud Democrat who was twice elected statewide in Louisiana, but the way I heard working-class voters describe my party was often unrecognizable. But we also found plenty of reasons for optimism: The people we talked to don’t think Trump is delivering on his promises to lower costs; in fact, his tariffs are killing working folks. They don’t like how he’s cut their health care. They really don’t like all the ways he’s helped his rich friends scam the system. And they’re hungry for authentically normal candidates; candidates fighting to ensure hardworking, decent people – the people who make our country great – are respected and rewarded.
That ethos defined Democrats for generations – ever since FDR pulled our nation back from the brink of economic and social disaster in the midst of the Great Depression. We can, and must, again be the party of the American Dream, and of American dreamers. Our initial research offers us a practical, informed, and necessary path forward.
This is not the end of our work, but the beginning. We will continue to provide research and insights on winning back working-class voters, and more details on our findings from this year, in the coming weeks and months.
Mitch Landrieu
Co-chair, Democracy Matters and American Bridge 21st Century
Executive Summary
The Working Class Project: 2025 Report
Working-class voters perceive Democrats to be woke, weak, and out-of-touch, too focused on social issues and not nearly focused enough on the economic issues that impact everyone, every day. But Democrats can win back these working-class voters, in 2026 and beyond.
Nearly one year since Trump was reelected, a solid majority of working-class voters remain frustrated, anxious, or struggling with their financial realities – and they aren’t optimistic any of that will change. They are worried about inflation, and about their paychecks keeping pace; about the price and attainability of both housing and health care; about the job market, Trump’s chaotic tariff policies, and their sense of stability. These Americans define themselves by their hard work and self-sufficiency, but feel like neither trait is rewarded in our economy. They’re angry – not necessarily at the wealthy, but at an unfair and rigged system where politicians give the rich and powerful all the breaks. And they’re disappointed Trump and Republicans aren’t helping them, viewing them as more focused on picking fights and looking out for themselves than on reducing how much everything costs.
This provides Democrats with an opening. To earn back the votes of working-class Americans, our Party needs to make clear it values people who work hard. Instead of denigrating or contrasting ourselves with Republicans, Democrats need to advocate for our own policy agenda, one that first-and-foremost rewards hard-working, fair-playing people – an agenda that helps them get ahead, not just get by; an agenda that ensures health care is affordable, homeownership is obtainable, and retirement is possible. And because the status quo feels broken, Democrats shouldn’t be afraid to acknowledge we need big, bold, aggressive changes, across the board.
There’s no one perfect model for Democrats to follow as we try to earn back working-class votes and work our way out of the political wilderness. But Democrats who are authentically relatable, clear, and respectful in how they communicate connect most with the working class.
Finally, when and where we reach these voters also matters. They still increasingly get their information from, and form their opinions on, non-traditional platforms – particularly YouTube and TikTok – and Democrats need to build up their presence on these channels.
Summary of Research
The Working Class Project: 2025 Report
The Working Class Project conducted:
39 focus group discussions with nearly 400 collective working-class voters across 21 states, from February to August.
A two-phase media consumption study among working-class voters across 21 states in the spring. This included an online survey of 7,555 voters, of whom 2,179 self-identified as working class, and media-usage diary research, in which survey respondents were asked to complete a detailed diary of their media usage over 24 hours. A total of 474 working-class voters participated in this diary research.
Weekly longitudinal qualitative research over 13 weeks from March to June, among a fixed group of 28 self-identified working-class swing voters across battleground states who voted for Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election. Participants responded to and discussed new questions each week, focused on Trump’s actions in office, party brands, and current events.
Monthly longitudinal quantitative research in April, May, and June. Each wave included 1,000 interviews via an online panel among self-identified working-class voters, who were asked a series of tracking questions to measure movement, and new questions to capture reactions to unfolding national events.
A benchmark messaging survey of more than 3,000 working-class voters across 21 states. This survey consolidated the most resonant message frames borne from focus group discussions and longitudinal qualitative boards to assess how they moved voters on a generic ballot and congressional vote. Messages covered issue areas focused on the economy and rising costs, tariffs, health care, corruption, immigration and LGBTQ+ issues, specifically focused on trans issues that continued to arise in each focus group.
Ad testing in September and October that assessed messages that performed well in the benchmark survey, integrated into various ad treatments, and tested in Virginia as well as the remaining 20 states in which we conducted research.
 | A guest post by
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I see the title "PROJECT: 2025" and my anxiety spikes.
Then I look again and it reads "THE WORKING CLASS PROJECT: 2025" and my blood pressure goes back to normal.
Thank you for all of your efforts. It was a pleasure to participate in the discussions.
One final opinion that I'd like to share, is the belief that the Party has to become more granular in its offerings to the electorate. Terms of art like affordability, housing, living wages and universal healthcare are fine on the surface but I believe that the electorate wants to know how you're going to achieve your platform.
I just read that the tech industry is anticipating that they will need over 207,000 electricians to complete their data center ambitions in the medium-term and don't have the numbers. I'm sure, as well, that they will need HVAC experts. These unfilled, available positions which may require training, are remaining vacant in all industries. And, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has also surveyed businesses requesting that highschool-level students receive more business training courses to prepare for the future workforce. I see a significant disconnect here -- but it's one that I posit can be bridged through the promotion of existing government-backed programs.
My suggestion is to promote the expansion, revision and re-institution of programs like, the Jobs Corps, the Americorps and the Peace Corps; to rethink the Pell Grant program, as well as to work with organizations like Habitat for Humanity to achieve these ends. And, this work could be coordinated with the trade unions, education associations and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. This would mean job creation which also caters to up-skilling and re-skilling workers for the AI generation.
This is something that I think can be fleshed out by party members towards a more enhanced messaging campaign for both the 2026 and 2028 elections.
Again, thank you for the opportunity to participate.
All the best!