by Charles E Lewis Jr | May 3, 2026
In its decision in Louisiana v. Callais, the John Roberts-led conservative majority of the Supreme Court struck another damaging blow to fair minority representation in our fragile democracy. Born out of struggles during the Civil Rights era, when people gave their...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | May 1, 2026
In my recent commentary on Vice President Kamala Harris’s appearance on The View, I focused on what I viewed as a critical strategic misstep: her failure to differentiate herself from President Biden at a moment when voters were clearly signaling a desire for change....
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Apr 28, 2026
President Biden’s disastrous performance in the June 2024 CNN debate in Atlanta opened the door for Kamala Harris’s long-shot bid for the White House. It did not take long for her to slam the door shut on her candidacy with her ill-fated appearance on The View on...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Feb 18, 2026
Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson’s life had purpose: to improve the lives of as many people as possible. That is an epitaph that many of us would be happy to leave. He began his journey as a confidant to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., as they worked to help people...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Nov 13, 2025
Millions of Americans suffered significant losses during the most recent federal government shutdown—the longest in the nation’s history. If there were any winners from this standoff, it is the Democratic Party. By forcing Trump and Republicans to take a stance...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | May 20, 2025
Gov. Wes Moore (D). Photo by Bryan P. Sears. Maryland Governor Wes Moore’s veto of Senate Bill 587, which would have established the Maryland Reparations Commission to conduct a two-year study of whether the state should provide reparations to citizens impacted by the...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | May 13, 2025
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (center) is flanked by Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (left) and Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar As we watch in horror as Project 2025 wreaks its havoc on the American landscape, its policies, and institutions, the one...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Apr 22, 2025
Former Congresswoman Barbara Lee continues to emulate the legacy of her mentor, the late Ron Dellums, as she won the election to complete the term of ousted Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, who voters recalled in November. Dellums served as Oakland’s mayor from January 2007...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Nov 6, 2024
I spent the morning communicating with family, friends, colleagues, and students, devastated by the thought of Donald Trump returning to the White House in January. The depressing news hit me like a ton of bricks this morning when I learned the election results. I...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Aug 23, 2024
As I watched the Democratic National Committee’s convention last week and listened to many pundits describe it as flawless, I thought about how much of Motown’s success was due to its meticulous grooming of its artists and the music they presented. You have to be a...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Jul 25, 2024
The political landscape appears to be a swirling sandstorm with Kamala Harris’s ascension to the top spot of the Democratic ticket. After agonizing weeks of waiting to see if President Biden would accept the bleak prognosis for his reelection, he finally...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Jul 17, 2024
I was surprised by Trump’s selection of J.D. Vance as his running mate. Vance was a late convert to the MAGA cult. He offered several deprecating appraisals of Donald Trump during the runup to the 2016 election, referring to him as “cultural heroin” and fearing Trump...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Jul 8, 2024
November 5, 2024, looms as a defining day in the struggle to preserve democracy in the United States. Democrats seek to fend off Donald Trump’s quest to usher in his brand of authoritarianism. The Supreme Court has set the stage with its determination that the...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | May 25, 2023
The Democratic Party has a long history of poor communications. President Jimmy Carter helped to undermine his chances for reelection by handing Republicans a public relations gift that is enshrined in the Hall of Fame of political gaffs. Although he never uttered the...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Apr 11, 2023
The Institute of Politics at the Harvard Kennedy School tracks the perceptions of young voters aged 18 to 29 years old with their semi-annual national polls. In the spring of 2021, pollsters found that despite the chaotic state of American politics, hope for the...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Dec 21, 2022
Congressman Hakeem Jeffries is well-prepared to walk onto the biggest stage of his life. On January 3, 2023, he will make history when he succeeds the incomparable Nancy Pelosi as the leader of the Democratic Party. It is a tall order. Speaker Pelosi is generally...
by Charles E Lewis Jr | Nov 13, 2022
Those who favor the Democratic Party’s policies can breathe a sigh of relief that the red wave never materialized. I had my doubts. President Biden had the best outcome for a president during the midterm elections in 20 years since the Republicans gained 8 seats in...
