Indivisible's 2026 Primary Plan

I am not a member of any organized political party. I am a Democrat.

--Will Rogers

I've always been a "party man," a partisan Democrat out to elect Democrats at every level of public life. I've always dreaded primaries, because some divisions refuse to heal. So I've been "establishment" in that sense. But I'm also pretty quick to react to behavior that violates my essential political values, and I'm just as likely to say, "Go ahead and rock that boat!" I've helped win a primary or two, and I've also helped lose a few. I actually know in more detail than I'll ever divulge exactly what Will Rogers was talking about.

But the utter blindness on the part of seven Democratic senators and one independent senator to the recent effectiveness of stiffened spines on the progressive side -- last Tuesday's national landslide hello! -- sent me into a downward spiraling invention of new obscene phrases to express my anger and my growing disdain for the party establishment, that somewhat mythical creature, wherever on earth they congregated to decide to once again cave.

So it doesn't bother me a bit to see the progressive rump org "Indivisible" fill in the void where the Democratic Party looks tired and feckless. Indivisible is on the ground everywhere, including an active chapter in Watauga County, where they organized local "No Kings" rallies attended by thousands. Indivisible is calling for primaries against the Democratic deaf, dumb, and blind -- whoever they are, at whatever level on the ballot. That is not going to be welcome news for my party's establishment, especially the progressive strategists who scold us if we wanted shed of Joe Manchin. Their argument: A rogue conservative Democrat is still better than any trump Republican. (Yeah, probably ... but still. See what I mean about "some divisions refuse to heal.")

Wikipedia on Indivisible:

Indivisible is a progressive movement and organization in the United States initiated in 2016 as a reaction to the election of Donald Trump as president of the United States. The movement began with the online publication of a handbook written by congressional staffers with suggestions for peacefully but effectively resisting the move to the right in the executive branch of the United States government under the Trump administration that was widely anticipated and feared by progressives. According to American urban policy analyst Peter Dreier, the goal of Indivisible is to "save American democracy" and "resume the project of creating a humane America that is more like social democracy than corporate plutocracy."

Indivisible's founders, Leah Greenberg and Ezra Levin, were included in Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People of 2019. 

Indivisible's 2026 Primary Plan (ALL-CAPS included)

WE HAVE BEEN FAILED BY DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP, AGAIN.

After the largest mass protest in U.S. history, after a historically successful election for Democrats, and while poll after poll shows that Republicans have the weaker hand in the shutdown fight, Democrats in the Senate have chosen to surrender. As minority leader, Chuck Schumer has demonstrated that he has no strategy, no savvy, and no spine. By allowing his caucus to cave to the will of the regime, he has proven that Democratic leadership is defined by fecklessness in the face of authoritarianism.

 

THAT’S WHY INDIVISIBLE WILL BE LAUNCHING THE LARGEST PRIMARY PROGRAM IN OUR HISTORY, GUIDED BY A GRASSROOTS NETWORK THAT IS PISSED OFF.

We must turn the page on this era of cowardice. We must nominate and elect Democratic candidates who have an actual backbone. And we must ensure that the kind of failed leadership we see from Senator Schumer does not doom a future Democratic majority.

THIS COUNTRY NEEDS DEMOCRATS TO FIGHT LIKE AN ACTUAL OPPOSITION PARTY TO AN AUTHORITARIAN REGIME.

We need them to fight like lives depend on it, because they literally do. Republicans are working to strip away healthcare and food assistance from millions of Americans; they are enabling a would-be king to undermine our democracy; and they cheer on the invasion of our cities and kidnapping of our neighbors. And too many elected Democrats are content to watch from the sidelines as they do it—or worse, abet this machine of corruption and abuse.

IN 2026, WE SAY: NO MORE.

If a Democratic candidate isn’t willing to leave it all on the field, it’s time for them to get out of the way or be pushed out of the way. If a Democratic candidate is flirting with the forces that elevated Trump and helped him consolidate power, they have no place in the future of this party.

THE INDIVISIBLE BASE IS READY TO FIGHT FOR THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY WE DESERVE.

Right now, we’re talking with our grassroots network to understand where they want to see this fight go. Indivisible groups are the leaders of this movement, and they are not backing down. Decisions on primaries will be guided by them. Victories over the status quo will be powered by them. And our new leaders will be accountable to them.

BECAUSE INDIVISIBLE UNDERSTANDS THE CLOCK IS TICKING, AND WE DON’T HAVE TIME FOR DEAD WEIGHT IN THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. IT’S TIME TO CLEAN HOUSE.