Podcast Summary: "Winning Elections Is Only The First Step"

Podcast: Next Comes What
Host: Andrea Pitzer
Date: November 6, 2025
Main Theme:
This episode explores why winning elections is just the start of upending authoritarian impulses in the U.S. Drawing lessons from global responses to strongmen and connecting to contemporary American struggles, host Andrea Pitzer and guests analyze the limits—and possibilities—of voting, organizing, and principled policy in the ongoing fight against Trumpism and democratic backsliding.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Election Results and What They Mean

• Democratic Wins:
  • Democrats swept key races (Virginia, New Jersey, New York) and triumphed on major ballots nationwide.
    • "[00:15] Andrea Pitzer: Massive, massive night for Democrats. I've been through a lot of these."
• Contextual Limits:
  • Despite successes, these were off-year contests: the presidency, the House, and the Senate remain under Trump and the GOP total control.
    • "[00:50] Host: But the good news is…victories that will be key to stopping Trumpism in the US."
• Collective Hope:
  • Emphasis on unity and hope as driving factors.
    • "[01:29] Andrea Pitzer: While we cast our ballots alone, we chose hope together. Hope over tyranny, hope over big money and small ideas, hope over despair."

2. The Nature and Limits of Elections

• Elections as Tools, Not Solutions:
  • Elections are critical but not sufficient for defending democracy; they must be paired with ongoing organizing and policy commitment.
    • "[02:02] Host: Elections are just tools, and there are many other tools."
• Judith Butler on Democratic Threats:
  • Explains intersections between gender, democracy, and authoritarianism.
    • "[03:01] Butler: The assault on gender is also an assault on democracy."
  • Stresses the need to broaden historical awareness of who is targeted by authoritarian regimes.
    • "[03:18] Butler: My sense was that one needed to widen the lens and see that many people have been subject to genocidal politics."

3. Historical Lessons: Labor, Democracy & Authoritarianism

• Union Struggles and Compromises:
  • U.S. unions formed through hard-won, sometimes violent battles— mirroring how elections are hard-won compromises in a deeply flawed system.
    • "[05:26] Historian: Compromise after the First World War…newfound confidence of workers and unions clashed with company owners."
    • "[06:19] Historian: The Matewan Massacre and…the largest armed conflict in the US since the Civil War."
• Enduring Exclusion:
  • U.S. founded on disenfranchisement; persistent suppression continues via gerrymandering, voting rights rollbacks, and selective enforcement.
    • "[07:39] Host: Texas announced gerrymandering to guarantee Republican rule in Congress."
    • "[07:58] Historian: Add up the 26 smallest states… control 52 seats with 18% of the population."

4. Global Comparisons: Authoritarian Subversion of Elections

• Case Study: Tanzania
  • Elections used to cement power amid repression and violence.
    • "[08:12] Host: Tanzania…incumbent Samia Soluhu Hassan…won 98% of the vote after disqualifying one opponent and jailing another…Hundreds appear to have been killed."
• Warning for the U.S.:
  • The risk of elections being rendered tools for authoritarian consolidation rather than democracy.

5. Critical Reflection on U.S. Leadership & Policy

• Presidential Dualities:
  • Even democratic advances (FDR’s New Deal) went hand-in-hand with profound injustices (Japanese American internment).
    • "[10:09] Host: But also implemented Japanese American internment in concentration camps during World War II."
• Constitutional Contradictions:
  • The Electoral College and court rulings often undermine the will of the majority.
    • "[10:31] Host: …two elections…hinged on electoral college victories where the popular vote went to the losing candidate…undermines democracy as a whole."

6. Models for Change: Campaigns and Coalitions

• Recent Candidates:
  • Analysis of Abigail Spanberger (Virginia) and Zoran Mamdani (NYC) shows success comes from listening and engaging with the actual needs of constituents, regardless of ideology.
    • "[12:26] Host: Spanberger…former CIA operations officer…Mamdani…immigrant of Indian descent hailing from Uganda…"
  • Both succeeded by building trust, crafting clear policies, and emphasizing coalitional work.
    • "[15:16] Andrea Pitzer: …church in Harlem…pastor…they couldn't afford the city."
    • "[13:41] Andrea Pitzer: New York, we're going to…deliver universal…"
• Beware Overpromising:
  • Spanberger cautious about promising policies she can't realistically deliver, warning “vulnerable people believed you.”
    • "[15:47] Historian: When we talk about things…Democratic Party is talking about, we have to not say we tried it and it didn’t work."

7. The Unfinished Work of Democracy

• Beyond Election Day:
  • “This week’s election is just a start…and in many cases, change will still have to be fought for.”
    • "[16:53] Historian: Democrats found momentum…But we still have so much work to do."
• Systemic Injustice & Courts:
  • Critique of the judiciary’s role in upholding racial profiling and immigration abuses.
    • "[17:32] Historian: Brett Kavanaugh…absolutely no problem whatsoever with racially motivated stuff by law enforcement."

8. Engaging Nonvoters & Responsibility

• Understanding Nonvoters:
  • Host urges persuasion over blame for low voter turnout; nonvoters may still be critical community actors.
    • "[20:04] Host: I see a lot of people hectoring that group and blaming them for election losses. My sense is that it’s on you to make it appealing to vote…"
• Embrace Other Tools:
  • Advocacy, organizing, and litigation are often as vital as voting.
    • "[20:04] Host: They might be a critical part of a library board or the major donor to a diaper bank. They might be organizing protests that will raise awareness…"

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Collective Defense:

  • "[00:00] Andrea Pitzer: …to get to any of us, you will have to get through all of us."

• On Hope:

  • "[01:29] Andrea Pitzer: While we cast our ballots alone. We chose hope together."

• On Elections’ Limits:

  • "[02:02] Host: Elections are just tools, and there are many other tools."

• Judith Butler on History and Solidarity:

  • "[18:45] Judith Butler: I remain convinced that one does need to know history in order to make sure it does not repeat."
  • "[18:57] Judith Butler: That one wants justice not just for the group to which one belongs, but for any group that suffers in a similar way."

• Politicizing Division:

  • "[12:16] Andrea Pitzer: Billionaire class has sought to convince those making $30 an hour that their enemies are those earning $20 an hour."

• On Power and Agency:

  • "[21:28] Andrea Pitzer: We won because we insisted that no longer would politics be something that is done to us. Now it is something that we do."

• On Movement and Change:

  • "[21:38] Host: …the election…is just the wave. We are the water."

Key Timestamps

• 00:00–00:46: Opening remarks, immediate reaction to Democratic victories.
• 01:29: Pitzer’s poetic statement on hope and agency.
• 02:20: Judith Butler introduces the intersection of gender and democracy.
• 03:01–03:44: Butler contextualizes anti-democratic assaults beyond typical boundaries.
• 05:26–06:41: U.S. labor history as a lesson on compromise and confrontation.
• 07:04–08:12: Restrictive voting laws and demographic imbalances in representation.
• 08:12–09:26: Tanzanian election violence used as a warning for U.S. democracy.
• 10:09–10:31: FDR, the New Deal, and the enduring shadow of exclusion.
• 12:16–16:01: Deep dive into Spanberger and Mamdani campaigns; lessons from their strategies.
• 17:07–18:05: Urgent need to address systemic police and judicial abuses.
• 18:45–18:57: Judith Butler on history, justice, and solidarity.
• 20:04–21:38: Discussion on engaging nonvoters and the importance of movements outside traditional politics.

Conclusion

Tone and Message:
The episode is clear-eyed yet hopeful, candid about the profound flaws and limitations of U.S. democracy, and insistent that genuine progress only happens through ongoing, principled organizing—elections are necessary but not sufficient. Drawing on global history, local results, and deep ethical reflection, the message is that democratic renewal demands much more than one good night at the polls.

Final words:
"[21:28] Andrea Pitzer: We won because we insisted that no longer would politics be something that is done to us. Now it is something that we do."
"[21:38] Host: …the election…is just the wave. We are the water."