NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� are harboring strong feelings of as the new year begins. And many are questioning whether their party's commitment to 鈥� 鈥� may lead to further political struggles in the Donald Trump era.
A recent poll from finds that a significant number of Democrats believe that it may be decades before the United States will get its first .
Specifically, about 4 in 10 Democrats said it鈥檚 鈥渘ot very likely鈥� or 鈥渘ot at all likely鈥� that a woman will be elected to the nation鈥檚 highest office in their lifetime, according to a December AP-NORC poll. That鈥檚 compared with about one-quarter of Republicans who feel the same.
While despondency is hardly unique for a political party after a high-profile loss, that finding reflects the deep depression that has set in among Democrats about the country and their party after soundly Vice President , the Democratic nominee.
Such concerns may already be shaping the search for a . For the first time in more than a decade, the top candidates for the job are all white men.
And looking further ahead, the party鈥檚 pessimism is influencing early conversations about the contest for the 2028 presidential nomination.
鈥淲e knew men hated women. The last election showed, for some of us, that we underestimated the extent to which some women hate other women,鈥� said , a Democratic state representative from South Carolina and former president of the National Black Caucus of State Legislators. 鈥淎merica is as racist and misogynist as it has always been.鈥�
Democrats have nominated a woman to run against Trump in two of the past three presidential elections. In both cases, Trump won decisively, over Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Harris in 2024. The Democrat who unseated Trump 鈥� Joe Biden in 2020 鈥� was a white man.
Adding insult to injury for many Democrats was the long list of allegations brought by women against Trump. He was in civil court for sexual abuse and for a hush money case involving an adult film star. He was once bragging that he could grab women's genitals without consent because he was a celebrity.
Still, Trump narrowly carried every key swing state in November. Harris among women, winning 53% to Trump鈥檚 46%, but that margin was somewhat narrower than Biden鈥檚. Trump's support held steady among white women, with slightly more than half supporting him, similar to 2020.
Most Democrats 鈥� about 7 in 10 鈥� believe 2025 will be a worse year for the U.S. than 2024, the AP-NORC poll found. That鈥檚 compared with about 4 in 10 U.S. adults who feel that way.
The poll also found that Democrats were less likely to be feeling 鈥渉appy鈥� or 鈥渉opeful鈥� about 2025 for them personally. Instead, about 4 in 10 Democrats said 鈥渟tressed鈥� described their feelings extremely or very well, while roughly one-third of Democrats said this about the word 鈥済loomy.鈥�
Meanwhile, majorities of Republicans and conservatives said 鈥渉appy鈥� described how they feel about 2025 at least very well. A similar share said the same about 鈥渉opeful.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 so dark out there right now,鈥� said poll respondent Rachel Wineman, a 41-year-old Democrat from Murrieta, California. 鈥淢y family and I are circling the wagons, trying to keep our heads down and survive.鈥�
There are early signs that this loss has triggered questions about a core commitment of the modern-day Democratic Party to support minority groups, including women, while pushing diverse candidates into positions of power.
Some Democratic leaders fear that Trump鈥檚 strong success with 鈥� and his modest gains among in the election 鈥� may signal a that could transform the political landscape for years to come unless the party changes its approach.
The vote for a DNC chair offers the first clue as to the direction of the party during the second Trump administration. The election is three weeks away, and the leading candidates are , the Wisconsin state chair, and , the Minnesota state party chair.
Either would be the first white man in the job since Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine left the position in 2011.
Martin and Wikler are considered the strong front-runners in a field of eight candidates who qualified for a DNC candidate forum Saturday, the first of four such gatherings before the Feb. 1 election at the committee's winter meeting in suburban Washington.
Two candidates are women: former presidential contender and a former congressional candidate, educator and civil rights activist.
The outgoing chair, , who is Black, said in a statement that the committee will be well-positioned to compete in future elections and push back against Trump's policies.
鈥淒emocrats stand ready to hold him accountable,鈥� Harrison said. "We will continue to invest in all 50 states to build power from the local level on up and elect Democrats across the country.鈥�
Meanwhile, some rank-and-file Democrats in early primary states are openly wondering whether the party鈥檚 next White House nominee would be at a disadvantage if that person is not a straight white man who is Christian. Barack Obama is the only Black man to have been elected president in American history.
New Hampshire Democrat Thalia Flores said Harris鈥� loss has made her rethink the political viability of rising stars such as Transportation Secretary , who is gay, Pennsylvania Gov. , who is Jewish, or Michigan Gov. , the most prominent woman expected to weigh a 2028 presidential bid.
鈥淜amala鈥檚 loss can impact those kind of candidates, too, because anybody who鈥檚 not a mainstream white guy is maybe not a good bet,鈥� Flores said, indicating that such concerns would not affect her personal vote in the next presidential primary. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a shame that we鈥檙e even having the conversation.鈥�
She added, 鈥淭he American people can鈥檛 seem to support a woman."
Overall, the AP-NORC poll found that about one-quarter of Americans said it was extremely or very likely that the country will elect a woman as president in their lifetime. About 4 in 10 U.S. adults thought it was somewhat likely and about one-third said it was not very likely or not at all likely.
Such feelings are consistent among Americans regardless of age or gender, although Black Americans are more likely than white or Hispanic adults to say it鈥檚 鈥渘ot very likely鈥� or 鈥渘ot likely at all鈥� to happen in their lifetime.
Sarah Burnett, a 49-year-old small business owner from Edgerton, Missouri, said she鈥檚 feeling 鈥渄read鈥� about the direction of the country in 2025.
鈥淎ll of us are not looking forward to the next four years,鈥� she said.
As for whether she thinks the U.S. will elect a woman in her lifetime, she said she鈥檚 trying to be optimistic.
鈥淵es, there鈥檚 going to be sexism involved, misogyny, the patriarchy and all of that. 鈥� But we did have a Black president,鈥� Burnett said. 鈥淪o yes, I would expect a woman to be elected. Do I have high expectations? No."
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Sanders reported from Washington.
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The AP-NORC poll of 1,251 adults was conducted Dec. 5-9, 2024, using a sample drawn from NORC鈥檚 probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.7 percentage points.
Steve Peoples And Linley Sanders, The Associated Press
