Former President Barack Obama on Thursday celebrated Democrats’ sweeping victory in Tuesday’s election, but confused that there’s extra work for the social gathering to do.
“Tuesday was nice, but we’ve got a lot of work to do,” Obama mentioned throughout a dwell taping of the podcast “Pod Save America.”
Democrats received throughout the spectrum Tuesday with Zohran Mamdani elected mayor of New York City, whereas Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill received gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey, respectively. In California, a Democrat-backed ballot measure on redistricting was additionally authorized by voters.
Over the weekend, Obama campaigned with Spanberger and Sherrill, and known as Mamdani — whom he didn’t endorse — to provide to be a “sounding board,” NCS beforehand reported.
“It was good to see progressives get off the mat. It was a good reminder that it turns out the American people are paying attention,” Obama mentioned Thursday, in accordance to a rushed transcript supplied by Crooked Media, which organized the occasion. “They don’t want cruelty. They’re not looking for people on the top trying to entrench themselves in power. They believe in community. They believe in treating people with decency and respect.”
The former president went on to say that this week’s elections demonstrated that candidates “with integrity” resonate with voters.
“It turns out that if, number one, you have candidates with integrity who believe in something and are in it for the right reasons, they can win,” Obama mentioned.
All three candidates ran on a platform of affordability — a problem that propelled President Donald Trump’s return to the White House within the 2024 election. Trump on Wednesday urged Republicans to focus more on the economy of their messaging.
Another takeaway from the election, in accordance to Obama, is “when young people are engaged and involved, then we win.”
According to preliminary NCS exit polls, almost 80% of voters aged 18-29 backed Mamdani. Similarly, 69% of the identical age group voted for Sherrill and 70% supported Spanberger. In California, 84% of voters 24 and beneath forged a poll in favor of Democrats’ redistricting measure, together with 76% of voters between the ages of 25 and 29.
Looking forward to future elections, Obama mentioned Democrats’ “job is to say that we want everybody engaged.”
“We want to have a conversation about how to make sure that every person in this country is treated with dignity and respect, and there are ladders of opportunity, and that there, there’s the possibility of community and that we’re getting along,” Obama mentioned.
“Not in some cliched, phonied way,” Obama continued, “But in a genuine, deep way where we recognize, yeah, we have differences and yes, there are fights that are going to have to be fought, but that deep down, there is something core in us that we have in common that is extraordinary. And America at its best leans into this notion of e pluribus unum— out of many, can come one.”