S6 Ep30: ‘All of You Could Be Democrats’ (with Anderson Clayton)

Summary

The Focus Group Podcast – S6 Ep30: ‘All of You Could Be Democrats’
Host: The Bulwark | Guest: Anderson Clayton
Date: March 21, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode, guest-hosted by Rachel Jambaza, centers on the political attitudes and disillusionment of Gen Z voters—many of whom identify as independents and opted not to vote in the 2024 election. The discussion features Anderson Clayton, the Gen Z chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party, who shares her experiences in grassroots organizing, the challenges of engaging young voters, and the necessity of authentic, local outreach by political parties. Throughout, the hosts and guests examine real focus group excerpts, diving into why young people are disengaged from electoral politics despite their strong opinions about policy and the state of the country.

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Anderson Clayton’s Political Journey & Gen Z Engagement

[01:47–06:33] Anderson’s Background and Motivation

• Anderson grew up in rural Roxboro, NC, where politics was a “forbidden” dinner-table topic.
• Her political awakening began in college, galvanized by voter suppression targeting students.
• Participated in local Democratic Party efforts, attending Board of Elections meetings and advocating for campus voting sites.
• “A group of really small, committed people coming together and saying, we’re going to fight for something—even though that fight is uphill and it may not be winnable. The political bug bit me and I feel like I’ve been in it ever since.” – Anderson Clayton [05:29]
• Career has included campaign work (Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, Amy McGrath), county party leadership, and an insurgent run for state chair.
• Emphasizes the importance of local action as the true entry point for political engagement.

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Focus Group Insights: Why Gen Z is Disengaged

[07:38–11:45] Young Voters Express Frustration

• Broad themes: Not feeling represented by either party, distrust in politicians’ promises, concerns about social pressure and the influence of social media.
• “I never feel that either side is for my benefit or that the sides don’t fully represent all kinds of thinking, which I feel that should be represented.” – Young Male Voter 1 [07:38]
• Discomfort with both major 2024 candidates (Kamala Harris and Donald Trump): viewed as untrustworthy or not aligning with personal/religious values.
• Social pressure, fear of shunning for voting (especially online), and concerns about government corruption noted.
• “We need someone who…will follow through on exactly what they say they’re going to do…then you will have my vote and I might even donate thousands of dollars.” – Young Male Voter 3 [08:53]

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Building Trust and Making Local Politics Tangible

[12:18–16:01] Anderson on Restoring Faith and Educating Young Voters

• Stresses that engagement strategies need to be tailored—for college students, focus on the impact of state higher education policies; for young workers, address wage stagnation and local economic issues.
• Uses practical examples (minimum wage being stagnant, impacts of energy monopolies like Duke Energy) to connect politics to daily life.
• “What is a member of Congress supposed to do for somebody who’s in a place like Charlotte…versus a place like Hildebrand…? It’s different in both.” – Anderson Clayton [13:30]
• Anderson develops campus-specific literature, soliciting key issues directly from students via Instagram.

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Strategies for Effective Outreach & The Challenge of Party "Branding"

[16:18–22:37] Daily Work, Organization, and Party Perception

• Anderson details the grind of organizing: classroom visits, fundraising, event planning, constant travel.
• She targets not just Gen Z, but rural, urban, and diverse communities, with an emphasis on visible, relatable leadership.
• Locally, “energy” and “hungry” describe NC Democrats; nationally, the party’s image is less clear and less favorable.
  • “People had a better favor of a local party than they did the national one…sometimes people paint a wide brush with the national party…That is a hard thing to overcome.” – Anderson [20:27]

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Messaging, Media, and The Power of Authenticity

[22:37–30:21] Messaging, Media, and Breaking Through

• Anderson believes the party’s challenge isn’t the clarity of its message, but its inability to reach young and independent voters—particularly in media environments dominated by conservative voices.
  • “The thing that terrifies me most as a Democratic Party chair right now is that I don’t think we have the reach to voters that we need in order to get a message out.” [24:04]
• Urges candidates and party officials to embrace social media for outreach (citing Jeff Jackson as a model for using YouTube and TikTok).
  • “If your campaign is not actively putting information out there…find a volunteer whose it is then…” [25:16]
• Creating a “pipeline” for young people to see themselves in politics is crucial.

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Voter Policy Issues: What Gen Z Actually Cares About

[30:55–35:36] Top Issues from Focus Group Participants

• Young men: Healthcare for all, environmental stewardship, government corruption, skepticism about foreign aid and influence, desire for younger candidates.
  • “Every single person…I was like, this is a Democratic policy somewhere in our party.” – Anderson [34:12]
• Young women: Abortion and reproductive rights, feelings of being targeted by policies (“Trump’s been haunting my life since I was 12” [38:40]), living costs, skepticism about disinformation, concerns over taxes, immigration enforcement, and government scandals.
  • “I do feel like there is…no straight applause of like, who we’re deporting and who we’re keeping in…ICE is just being sent out to like, wipe out even like US citizens…” – Young Female Voter 6 [40:15]
• Participants exhibit awareness of specific legislation, foreign policy, and political scandals, countering the narrative that non-voters “don’t care.”

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Approaches to Meaningful Engagement

[41:32–47:24] Understanding and Empathy for Young Non-Voters

• Anderson emphasizes empathy and data: Most older voters became engaged only with age and stability. Young people are often in “survival mode,” with politics secondary to cost-of-living pressures.
• Authenticity and peer-to-peer organizing work better than top-down lecturing, especially from older generations.
  • “No one really wants to do what their parents told them to do. I certainly didn’t when I was 13 years old, or 18 for that matter.” – Anderson [43:33]

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Reimagining Political Involvement

[45:17–49:45] Revitalizing and Personalizing Politics

• North Carolina Dems are trying creative engagement: events like “sip and size,” local networking, youth auxiliary organizations.
• The pathway to greater involvement starts with accessible, fun, peer-driven events.
  • “The best people to organize young folks are other young people. And when my teenagers, when they're like, oh my God, I could be a part of a statewide organization, they are excited to get involved…” – Anderson [45:58]
• Anderson advocates for more realness in politics, drawing on her own candid style and experiences (“my mouth gets me in trouble…” [47:24]).
• She blends personal and professional life, using her relatability to connect with young voters (“I cursed like a sailor…And I think the more that people can see themselves in someone like that, it’s just helpful.” [48:04])

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• “If you were to look at a message where, like, we want everyone to have health care, and if that’s not a message, I don’t know what the hell is.” – Anderson Clayton [22:37]
• “We have to start now. But I am worried about the whole. We’re trying to do something that took Republicans 40 years to do in four.” – Anderson Clayton [27:05]
• “I want to distort the way in which people think about what is a Democrat and how have they always been painted to me in some ways.” – Anderson Clayton [47:37]
• “You can't be what you can’t see. And so if young people don’t see that there’s a place for themselves in the political process, why would they ever want to get involved?” – Rachel Jambaza [30:21]

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Key Takeaways

• Gen Z is politically opinionated and policy-aware, but feels alienated by both parties and is skeptical that voting leads to real change.
• The most effective engagement with young voters is local, authentic, peer-driven, and directly addresses their day-to-day concerns.
• Political parties need to bridge the gap using new media strategies and by amplifying young, relatable leaders.
• There is no single archetype of a Democrat; the party must embrace its “big tent” while still offering a unifying message and widening its reach.
• Peer influence, transparency, and empathy are critical; older generations’ scolding rarely works to activate new voters.

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This episode is a deep, hopeful dive into the realities of Gen Z civic engagement—grounded in both research and real experience from the field.

Transcript

[Parent 1]

Are you really buying a car online on Autotrader right now?

[Anderson Clayton]

Really?

[Parent 1]

At a playground?

[Anderson Clayton]

Yeah, really?

[Ad Host 1]

Look at these listings from dealers.

[Parent 1]

Wow, your search can really get that specific.

[Anderson Clayton]

Really?

[Parent 1]

And you just put in your info and boom, car's in your budget.

[Anderson Clayton]

Mom needs a second.

[Parent 1]

Honey, you can really have it delivered.

[Anderson Clayton]

Really? Or I can pick it up at the dealership. One sec, sweetie. Mommy's buying a car.

[Rachel Jambaza]

Mommy, look.

[Parent 1]

I think kid is walking up the slide again.

[Anderson Clayton]

Really? Autotrader, buy your car online. Really?

[Parent 1]

Are you really buying a car online on Autotrader right now?

[Anderson Clayton]

Really? I can get super specific with dealer

[Ad Host 1]

listings and see cars based on my budget.

[Parent 1]

You can really have it delivered or pick it up. Mommy, I think kid is walking up the slide.

[Rachel Jambaza]

Really?

[Anderson Clayton]

Autotrader, buy your car online. Really?

[Rachel Jambaza]

Hey, guys, it's Rachel Jambaza here at the Bulwark welcoming you to another episode of the focus group podcast. Sarah Longwell is on the road this week with the Bulwark live shows, but she'll be back next week. A couple weeks ago, when Ed Elson was on the show, he noted with a bit of outrage that the young men we listened to in our focus groups were complaining about the state of the country. But many of them hadn't voted in 2024. But that didn't mean they didn't care about the political issues of the day. They did care, in fact, a lot. We're going to talk about why so many of these young people have chosen to sit out of electoral politics and the nut that both political parties still have to crack to turn out more of them. My guest today is, like me, Gen Z, and she is hyper political. In fact, she's one of the most buzzed about political operatives in America today. Anderson Clayton, chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party. Anderson, thank you so much for coming on.

[Anderson Clayton]

Thanks for having us, Rachel. We're excited about it. And thank you for the kind introduction. Much, much too kind, to be honest.

[Rachel Jambaza]

No, not too kind. It's true. And before we hear from the young men and women that we spoke to, I actually want to start with you because your background is quite interesting and we've also known each other for a while, and so I'd love to get a chance for you to tell everyone a bit more about yourself. There's this awfully outdated trope that young people don't care about politics, that they're not engaged in politics, and. And even if some of them aren't voting, they do care, and they care a lot. And you're a prime example of that. So can you walk us through your background and why you decided to get involved and in this role in particular, as chair of the North Carolina Democratic

[Anderson Clayton]

Party, I was on a college campus this last week, actually, so I got to go and speak with UNCG at NC State. And so both of the two political science classes there that I've talked with. And so both of them are two of our UNC system schools in North Carolina, which means that we have a university system. And honestly, how I got involved with politics for the first time was by going to college. And I. I know that people hear that trope often, but I'm from a rural part of North Carolina, and so Roxboro is where I grew up. It's a little, tiny town in person county. And it's not necessarily known for. I joke with folks. The two things that I got told when I was growing up not to talk about at the dinner table were religion and politics. And those are the two things that I like to talk the most about at the dinner table. And it wasn't until I got to Appalachian State, though, that I really found out sort of what it meant to be politically engaged. And that was in 2016. North Carolina had a Republican governor named Pat McCrory who had decided that his main mission as governor was to disenfranchise college students across our campuses by taking away voting sites for early voting and election day voting on college campuses. And the reason why the governor has that ability in North Carolina is because the governor's party typically controls the board of elections at the state level and the board of elections at the county level. If you've been following North Carolina politics closely, though, at all, you'll know that Republicans in my state legislature just stripped away the right of the governor to control boards of elections in counties because they themselves moved that to the state auditor in North Carolina in order to once again try to disenfranchise college students. Rewinding back to how I got involved with that, though, is that on my college campus, the Watauga County Democratic Party was a county party that was out there actively trying to register students to vote. And they were a county party that had looked at me as a student on Appalachian State's campus, and they said, hey, did you know that your right to vote is being threatened right now by Republicans on this campus? And I was like, no, but I value my right to vote, and I do want to make sure that I get involved in protecting that on this campus. And so I tell people that, because the way that I got involved in politics first was by going to a local board of elections meeting. And it was talking during public comment about how much I wanted my right to vote to stay with students on campus and sort of that expansion. And I think a lot of times now, the way that we see people being activated in politics is at a greater level. It's at a much higher level of like, I'm trying to maybe run for office myself, or I'm trying to figure out, like, what's the great step that I can take instead of maybe the building blocks that are what got me here, which was going to a local meeting that not a lot of people really knew about, but it had a lot of impact on whether or not I actually got the right to vote on that campus. And in 2016, when North Carolina went red for Donald Trump for the first time, Watauga county, where Appalachian State was, where I went to school, went blue for the first time in history. And it was because students and people in that county fought for the right to vote to stay on that campus. And they were the only county party in the entire state that sued to keep that voting site on campus. And it was the first time that I was like, wow, a group of really small, committed people coming together and saying, we're going to fight for something. Even though that fight is uphill and it may not be winnable. The political bug bit me and I feel like I've been in it ever since. And so I bounced around. I did campaigns. I was in Iowa for Kamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren in 2019. I was in McGrath Land, Kentucky with Mitch McConnell and Amy McGrath when they were running against each other in 2020. And I became a person, county Democratic party chair in 2021. And I worked my way up to being a state party chair after running an insurgent campaign to defeat a long term state party chair to try to make sure that we were organizing in all 100 counties in North Carolina. And so I hope that the, the story of how I got into this is emblematic of what I believe that we need to be helping young people understand about how they can make an impact in politics. Because for so long we're, we're taught to look up instead of looking down and, and holding on to our piece of what's possible in that pie.

[Rachel Jambaza]

I think very inspiring and I think it's really relatable. A lot of young people I speak to to say, you know, that they see something local that's actually happening to them, that's affecting their everyday lives. And that's their introduction, politics. And a lot of times, that's what it takes. And that actually leads to this next section of what I want to talk to you about today. We know that young people are engaged in politics and political conversations, but they're not cozying up to either party because they don't really see either party working for them. In fact, Gen Z is leading a surge in independence. According to a recent Gallup study, more than half of Gen Z identifies as politically independent. And in the last few weeks, we've talked to some Gen Z men and women in separate groups about a whole bunch of stuff. They all identified as politically independent and moderate. One thing we found is that a lot of them are pretty jaded about the political process, and a lot of them didn't vote in 2024. And even if they did vote, there's just a lot of disillusionment with the government generally. Let's listen to them talk about why that is.

[Young Male Voter 1]

I've never really felt seen by either parties. And it's funny because a lot of my friends, I actually have a lot of conversations with my friends in person, more than online or when it comes to that. And a lot of my friends will be like, no, you have to. You have to. No, you don't understand. And so they know how I feel. We're pretty open with those conversations like that. But as far as voting, I just always express, like, I never feel that either side is for my benefit or that the sides don't fully represent all kinds of thinking, which I feel that should be represented. So that's why I don't usually vote.

[Young Male Voter 2]

I would go to, like, grocery stores and hear people talking about it. And even my mother, she tried getting me to vote for Kamala, but I didn't really like any either of the presidential candidates that much because, like, I felt like I didn't really like. As a Christian, I didn't really like all the LGBTQ stuff that Kamala was pushing. And then, like, I felt like Donald Trump wasn't really, like, the most trustworthy person. So I didn't really think voting for either would really affect me that much. And I wasn't really too fond of either candidate.

[Young Male Voter 3]

You could be a great person and a great politician, all that, but if you're not going to actually go through with what you're campaigning for, I don't really. There should be no point in me voting for, you know, so it's like, we need someone who's actually going to like who. Who we know, who will follow through on exactly what they say they're going to do, like exactly what they say they're going to do. Not miss like a single box, like do everything you said you're going to do, then you will have my vote and I might even donate thousands of dollars to your campaign.

[Young Female Voter 1]

I just didn't take an interest necessarily in either parties. I feel like there's these very different agendas that are being placed on both sides and I feel like me having more of a moderate like perspective. I just look at both of them and I don't know, I see them as equally. I see the good things in them, but I see the bad things in both of them as well.

[Young Female Voter 2]

I feel like it's a moral thing. Like I didn't support both parties and I thought that if either one won, I didn't want to be like, oh, I, I was the reason for that. So just didn't.

[Young Male Voter 4]

We saw in the Biden and Trump election where they had the at home elections and whatnot. I think a lot of that showed that a lot of it's an illusion. So to me it seems like probably both parties are being put where people want to be put. So I don't really think that either party is a good choice, you know what I'm saying? Because I think they're both corrupt and I think they're probably both working together behind closed doors.

[Rachel Jambaza]

If I like voted for one party or the other, felt like there'd be some like shunning and like, I don't know, like projection from peers of mine. I would say more so like social media than less so.

[Anderson Clayton]

And I think people are braver to

[Rachel Jambaza]

talk about that online and less so in person. But that is also sometimes like something that, you know, especially in 2024 came up a decent amount.

[Young Female Voter 1]

There were a lot of things I didn't like about Kamal, a lot of things I didn't like about Donald Trump. And I felt like I don't really need to vote if I don't really stand with either person 100% or follow or my ideas or my beliefs don't match what they're representing in the political party. So I was like, I feel like it's honest of me to just not go.

[Young Female Voter 3]

I think Kamala would have been very embarrassing. And obviously Donald Trump has his flaws. So I just didn't want to involve myself. I didn't think writing in somebody was a good option either. So I really, for a few months there towards the, when everybody was voting, I just tried to stay uninvolved as I could and I still try to do that in my everyday life. I really don't. I think people get too up in arms about every single little issue.

[Rachel Jambaza]

So there's a lot of dynamics there, from social shunning and social pressure to feeling like there's no follow through from politicians once they're actually in office. I'm sure that you have a bunch of conversations like this, whether it's when you're on campuses, like the campuses you were describing earlier, or even when you're door knocking. And I can honestly see where a lot of these young people are coming from. What case do you make to people of all ages and how do you help instill trust that their votes will actually lead to tandem, tangible, meaningful change?

[Anderson Clayton]

There's sort of two different demographics there that I'm hearing a lot of. Right. Like you have your young people that have gone to college or that are in college right now that sort of have a different appeal or sort of opinion about what politics is versus folks that I feel like went straight from maybe high school to trade school or they went straight into the job market afterwards. Because for me, talking to students on college campuses, like I'm talking about right now at the local level, our state legislature has heavily politicized higher education in North Carolina, something that did not used to be that way whatsoever. And the reason why you have such a great higher education system in North Carolina is because of the history of Democratic governors who have prioritized pushing money into places that have allowed North Carolina's economy to boost from it. And so the fact that we have 17 public universities of higher education in North Carolina are that are in geographically all different areas of the state means that we had a vision that regardless of what zip code you lived in, you deserved better than what you were getting at that moment in time. And I think that for some people, it's helping young folks understand the history of how that came to be. Because a lot of what I think we have to do is education, both civic education and also helping people understand like what, at what level of the ballot does impact you? What is a member of Congress supposed to do for somebody who's in a place like Charlotte, North Carolina versus a place like Hildebrand, North Carolina. And it's different in both because one is more rural, one is more urban. And I think that you've got to be able to speak to both of those issues. But one of the biggest things this year is that, you know, we've had a state legislature that's tried to ban DEI on college campuses. And so a lot of my diversity, equity and inclusion offices, like my women's centers, my LGBTQ centers, the students that are on those campuses that have worked in them, that know them best, they understand right now having Republicans in office and what that's doing to their communities that they find on these campuses. The other side to that, though, is that my Republican state legislature has not risen minimum wage in North Carolina for the last 15 years. That they've been in office and been in charge. And I'm like, I know damn well that every student that I talk to, every young person that I talk to, they may not know somebody making 7, 25 an hour, but they know somebody making $10 an hour that should be $15 an hour right now. They always pay the price for bad policies and things that they're normally getting left out of. And so those two issues have been really salient on the college campuses that I've talked to and that I've been going around for. Everybody else, though, sort of like my young people that are not on college camp, but that are more in a job field right now. I'm talking about the fact that, like Duke Energy in North Carolina is an energy monopoly. And we need elected officials that actually want to hold monopolies accountable. Because the reason why Duke Energy can raise your rates right now upwards of 22% is because of a state legislature. And having good people that are not taking Duke Energy money and that are willing to go up there and actually hold an electrical company accountable. Right. Or an energy monopoly accountable in that way is something that we need to have in Raleigh right now. But a lot of the things that I talk to people about are hyperlocal issues. And so I focus a lot on the state of North Carolina because to me, as a state party chair, local issues impact you way more than what's happening sometimes at a federal level. Although I will say, Rachel, going onto my college campuses this year, everybody, all the students that are looking at going to grad school right now, the bbb, when it passed, and putting limits on federal aid and funding that you can get to go to grad school, huge issue for many, many students right now. And I'm looking at making individual pieces of literature for every campus that I' this year in North Carolina, and I told those students, I was like, DM me on Instagram. Your biggest issues on this campus. Because I am going to make hyper local lit to NC State University to make sure that we're out there talking to wolf packs about what's going to mobilize them. And that is not going to be the same thing on a college campus like Elizabeth City State in the eastern part of North Carolina too.

[Rachel Jambaza]

So smart. So thinking about that, can you walk us through like what is your day to day? How are you traversing this entire state and getting to talk to as many people as possible? And also, even though you are Gen Z, you're not just focused on Gen Z. This just happens, happens to be a cohort you're passionate about. But how do you do it all and what does the day look like?

[Anderson Clayton]

Well, I'm not doing it all unfortunately because if I was, I, I would not have the decline of young people in some ways not voting right. Like I, I want to acknowledge what you said earlier of just like I really do get it, I get why young people feel the way they do about politics. And I think the ways that I have seen people come into a process is if they've been able to be part of the change. And that's the only way that, that I know how to get young people activated into this is to show them the pipeline to be able to do it. And so talking to those political science classes, I'm trying to email every political science professor I can at a university in North Carolina to be like, hey, if I can come talk to your class. And I go in there in a nonpartisan way too. I talk about Republicans and Democrats because part of it is just trying to help educate people about field organizing like politics. There are jobs that you can go into. Like this is a career, this is a field that you can have. And so many people especially and young people in the south have no concept of that. And so a lot of my day to day has been trying to a raise money to be able to keep the staff on that I have right now that help me do all the things that I do. And so a huge part of it is fundraising, but another big part of what I do is going around. And I took four hours out of my day yesterday to go talk with two different classes at NC State. And then I did call time all day and then I did an event that night. And so it's, we're on the road a lot. I'm in Charlotte today and I will be in Union County, Alexander county and Person county all this weekend. And it's, it's a constant motion of trying to make sure that we're reaching to your point, not just young people in that demographic, but also looking at like my rural voters, my urban voters. And I was here in Charlotte today, trying to figure out like festivals, block parties in downtown Charlotte that we never take part in. And I think that that's something really important for us to engage with this year. So I just got done meeting with a couple people for that too. So I don't know. It's a wide range of what I do and it never is the same day today unless I've got like a five hour call time block. Rachel, which sometimes I do. So for anybody that I'm calling for money, thank you for doing what you do for North Carolina. It allows us to have 25 full time people out there doing it. With me.

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[Rachel Jambaza]

So something you said stood out to me, which was that sometimes you go in in a nonpartisan way and just have a conversation about civic process or about roles that are available to young people. And these folks that we spoke to clearly had some choice words about both parties and sometimes, you know, they want nothing to do with either. But you are in a position where you're Actively trying to build trust within the Democratic Party and recruit young people to vote for Democrats at a time when that's really hard. And this can be a fun question to ask in our focus groups. What would you say is one word to describe the Democratic Party right now?

[Anderson Clayton]

Well, it depends on which version of the Democratic Party you're talking about. In North Carolina, I think we got energy, and it's energy that I feel across the state. If you were talking about the national Democratic Party, though, Rachel, I feel like people would have a very different answer to that. And that's not because I think that there's, like, one way to describe that necessarily. It's just like, I feel like a lot of people don't know who the national Democratic Party is. In North Carolina, we have really tried to make it so, like, your state party is your local party, that is, your local elected officials. Like, we have really, I feel like, tried to, I would say, like, rebrand what your version of a party is. And that doesn't mean that we've been able to reach everybody yet with it, but it's like, I hear better things. And we did a focus group. It was really interesting. We did a study, actually, that showed the difference between how people thought about the state Democratic Party versus the national Democratic Party. And it was people had a better favor of a local party than they did the national one. And I. I think that's not a surprise. Right. It's just like a sor of. I feel like sometimes people paint a wide brush with the national party in some ways, and that is a. A hard thing to overcome. But for me, at North Carolina, I'm like, we got energy, we rolling. I got Roy Cooper out there, like, throwing ball like Coop can hoop. In some ways. I have Anita Earls, who's running for Supreme Court. And, like, it's exciting on the ground, I think, to have so many people that are hungry for a Democratic win in North Carolina, too. So, like, energy and hungry are the two words that I would give us. I don't know. Yeah.

[Rachel Jambaza]

And just going a bit deeper there. I mean, one thing that I'm hearing in focus groups with young people is that there doesn't have to be one type of Democrat. Like, there can be many different types of candidates in different states. And we saw this in the 2025 elections, and I'm sure we'll see it in 2026 and 2028. But at the same time, they are craving some sort of message or sort of thing that people can rally behind. How do you square Those two where it's like, you want to lean into the individual personalities and obviously authenticity everyone's talking about as this, like, golden wand. But at the same time, there needs to be a clear consensus of what it does mean to be a Democrat in 2026.

[Anderson Clayton]

I think the Democratic Party doesn't have reach, to be honest with you. I don't think it's a message. I think if you were to look at a message where, like, we want everyone to have health care, and if that's not a message, I don't know what the hell is. We want fair wages for everybody. I want right to work laws in North Carolina to be eradicated. I could give you 17 different messages that I feel like would work in every part of North Carolina and also the country, for that matter. I think the federal minimum wage is still at 720 right now. Higher wages is not something that anybody should disagree with. Where we get in our party is like, how high should those wages be? I think. And that becomes the debate, right? But, like, the message itself could be simple. It's just the reach that we have is not what Republicans do. And I heard it from every young person on that thing that just said Kamala. And I said, her name is Kamala Harris. Every person I heard say that, I wanted to correct them and be like, it's Kamala. But when I was sitting outside of a polling booth in 2024, a polling booth, a polling location in 2024, and I had several, like, black voters come in and look at me, and they were like, I can't vote for Kamala. And I would tell them, I'd say, can I tell you what her real name is, though? Can I tell you how to pronounce it? Whatever information source that you got that from, whoever you heard pronounce her name like that. The people that are. That are paid to be journalists, that are paid to be out there, like, they know how to pronounce somebody's name. They learn it before they go on the air. Fox News knows how to say her name, for God's sakes. They intentionally write, do not say it. The thing that terrifies me most as a Democratic Party chair right now is that I don't think we have the reach to voters that we need in order to get a message out. And that is both because we have had Republicans that have taken over. Right. And have spent so much time building up Fox News. When you look at talk radio, that was such a huge thing in rural North Carolina still to this day, about how many Radio stations are just alt, right? Radio stations, honestly, that just constantly are out there saying for 15 years Democrats mean socialism. It's an information silo that we have gotten into. That to me, is what I hear when I hear those young people mispronounce her name, that they say they don't really know what she stood for, that they think she only stood for one thing. And I'm like, yeah, that's because we were never actually able to reach them with what she was actually saying. And I think that should be what we focus on and the pipelines that we build. And I, I heard it from the, the meetings that I just had with community leaders here in Mech. They were like, we need information, we need communication. And we are in a day and age of digital information in every way right now. I think that we've gotta be competing with that. And what that looks like in many different ways, I think is what Democrats are still trying to figure out, to

[Rachel Jambaza]

be honest, along those lines. What is your advice to other Democrats or even something you're working on about how to talk to young people, how to get that reach? What is something that everyone's getting wrong when it does come to reaching younger

[Anderson Clayton]

voters, you do have to have social media. Like, that's not an if and, or. But in this day and age, Like, I think so many, so many candidates that I meet are like, that's not my forte. And I'm like, find a volunteer whose it is then, you know, because if your campaign is not actively putting information out there, even some of the folks that I just met with, they said, you know, Anderson, I know some of our state legislators, I couldn't tell you what they've done since they've been in Raleigh though. And I was like, well, that's something that I can fix. Like if we need to make sure that there are a bulleted list of like, here's what Democrats have done for you. Because I, I think even as simple as that, people don't know, especially if you've been in office for so long, what is what. And so the state parties tried. We have a YouTube channel right now where I put out videos once a week now. I think Jeff Jackson was an all star at this 10 years ago and has been ever since. Sense and a lot of people. What's funny to me, I use Jeff Jackson as my example all the time because he is now my attorney General in North Carolina. He's my former member of Congress, but he is somebody who for the longest time, like, people made fun of him. In the party for how much. Jeff Jackson made YouTube videos and was actively out there on social media building up a platform and trying to help educate his voters about what he was doing in Raleigh. And now I think the same people that made fun of him are laughing at themselves now in some ways, because Jeff Jackson, to me, built a platform, built an audience before it was the thing to do in politics. And I think so many people don't understand. Young people get it, folks like Tate McRae, folks that have listened, folks that have built TikTok platforms, like, they understand this better than anybody. Like, it takes time to build a brand, to build a platform, to rebrand yourself, and everything else, too. And I say Tate McRae because I remember watching a video of her and her basically saying, like, I posted a TikTok video every 10 minutes for like a year of my life basically on the Internet before it really became something. And now it's like, you look at what she's been able to do. And I just think that's the same way I feel about Jeff Jackson is the same way I feel about so many people. Like, you knew them when they didn't become overnight sensations. They have built up that work and they put in the work to do it. And so we have to start now. But I am worried about the whole. We're trying to do something that took Republicans 40 years to do in four. In so many ways.

[Rachel Jambaza]

Yeah. I mean, but it takes time, like you said, like, it's little by little. And I think, you know, people laugh when you're just posting and no one is. Is watching the videos and it looks like you're posing to an audience of no one. But you got to start somewhere, and it builds up over time, and one video can suddenly go viral. And so it's worth trying. And also it's necessary to try. And I think, you know, Jeff Jackson's name comes up all the time in listening sessions. And it has for a while in. In the work that I've been doing, because people were seeing, they're like, oh, who's that guy? Jeff Jackson? Like, he seems interesting. Why aren't the Democrats talking about him?

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[Mike Volo]

This is Mike Volo of Lexicon Valley,

[Anderson Clayton]

and I'm Bob Garfield.

[Ad Host 4]

Are you one of those people who sometimes uses words?

[Mike Volo]

Do you communicate or acquire information with, you know, language?

[Anderson Clayton]

Hey, us too. So. So join us on Lexicon Valley to chew over the history, culture, and many mysteries of English, plus some wisecracks.

[Mike Volo]

Find us on one of those apps where people listen to podcasts.

[Rachel Jambaza]

Yeah. So are you vlogging now?

[Anderson Clayton]

Yes, I'm trying. I will say I did a Come Vote with me video. I actually think sometimes I wish I could strap a GoPro to my head, because I'm like, people would enjoy, I think, actually seeing what this life would be like, especially young people. Like, the college classes that I've talked to, so many of them looked at me and they were like, it's just nice to know there's someone that looks like you, that is as young as you are, like, in the party, Anderson. And, like, fighting and doing the things. And so to your point earlier, just like, I'm trying to make my videos now, we're trying to start our YouTube channel. We're doing the things, but I'm like, it's gonna take us a lot of time. And I think even the organic social media that we've been able to build up has been helpful. But all of my party chairs, I'm like, y' all also gotta get on the Internet. It can't just be elected officials. Like, it has to be people that are working inside the party. Like, there should be a spokesperson for the party on the Internet somewhere. Like, in every state party that they have too, I think. And. And it can be a volunteer if it couldn't be a paid position at first. Like, there are so many people that want to have the agency and the autonomy and so many young people that crave the authority. Right. To be able to say, yeah, you're the voice. And what's been incredible in North Carolina, too, is, like, I had 29 new Young Democrats that got elected for municipal races at the end of 2025. And so it's like, also, how do we make sure that it's not just, like, young people are working on campaigns in the backbone of the party, but, like, they are the face of it everywhere, too.

[Rachel Jambaza]

Yeah. Because you can't be what you can't see. And so if young people don't see that there's a place for themselves in the political process. Why would they ever want to get involved in it? And then it's a vicious cycle. But I mean, that actually brings me to the next section of quotes that I want to take a listen to, because it was really clear in our focus groups that these young people still had things and issues that they care very deeply about in the political arena, even if they didn't vote. And that just goes to show that there's an avenue for them to get involved. They just need an opening and a way to get in. So let's listen to what the men talked about as the issues they care most about.

[Anderson Clayton]

About the fact that they're really just hiding these.

[Mike Volo]

These names is just really crazy.

[Anderson Clayton]

Like, we just don't really know what's. Who's really running the.

[Mike Volo]

The government.

[Young Male Voter 3]

Free health care for all Americans. I feel like that's going to definitely, like, change the country in so many aspects.

[Mike Volo]

I don't think that they've really comprehended what's going on with the environmental aspects. Impacts of AI Who. Who really owns the water. Right. And can it cut into residential water sources? Well, what these companies have been doing, it's. It's a yes, right? And that's technically illegal. I know for a fact that I'll

[Anderson Clayton]

be voting for the youngest candidate on

[Young Male Voter 4]

the ballot, regardless of what party they're

[Anderson Clayton]

from, Just because there's been a lot

[Mike Volo]

of older people as president. I think that there's a lot of fraud in our government, a lot of corruptness, especially with the Epstein files that were just released. Justice is all the way out there. I don't know if we're gonna find justice for that. So, yeah, I do. I do believe there's a lot of corruption, but also within our own government, but also other governments that influence us as well.

[Young Male Voter 3]

I feel like right now, the country and kind of just the world in general is really just in a very, like, unpredictable state. I feel like we're giving away a lot of money, like, to other countries and stuff like that, like, to Israel and stuff like that, while they're literally like, bombing kids and starving people to death. So, you know, that's not really kind of like the best thing to do. I think that we should definitely kind of invest more of that money into our own country so that we can better ourselves as a whole entire unit and then go back out into the world and help everybody else.

[Ad Host 4]

You know, we don't take the victimization, victimization of young girls by these powerful people that we voted in place. Like, we're just not Even acknowledging it, like, I don't know, it's just really odd. Like, we're seeing people on planes and in the hot tub and on trips with young girls on their laps and all kinds of stuff. And we're not dealing with it, we're not even talking about it. And this could be happening continuously.

[Mike Volo]

I think it would be cool to have, like, an independent candidate get elected and have an independent party, something that combines both Republican and Democratic ideas. That way we can actually agree on what those. How those two parties overlap. And I know, like, for me personally, I'm a Christian, so I have a fair mix of Democratic and Republican ideas. For example, I'm pro life. But the thing is about that is that I think that we also need to do a better job, like supporting kids growing up.

[Rachel Jambaza]

Okay, Anderson, what about that stands out to you? I know you said religion and politics, your two favorite things to talk about. Same for some of these young people we spoke to.

[Anderson Clayton]

Yeah. My first reaction was like, man, it does always come back to abortion, doesn't it? In some ways, for that last one. And not to, like, just make light of that. But I was like, it's still in there. Even as much as people would like to say that's not as big of an issue anymore. Right. In some ways. And I'm like, actually, I still think it is. What we heard were the things that I hear often, right? Healthcare being the biggest one of that too. And then also looking at raising wages, I think is just a huge one of. Across the board, young people are the most impacted by that. And then honestly, you know, it's funny, until that last guy, I was like, all of you could be Democrats in this day and age. I think it's just making sure that you see yourselves, every single person. I was like, this is a Democratic policy somewhere in our, in our party. In that sense, it's like, what person in the party, though, are you talking to when you have that happen? Right? And I think that sometimes the biggest downfall of being a big temp party can be that sometimes people don't necessarily see the party fighting for just one thing. That is the, the, the issue that I think they care the most about. And sometimes I feel like that's what can restrict us. But it also is what enables us in so many ways, too, to be a place where you can get, honestly, a senator in North Carolina elected is when you have a big temp party that brings in people from all different sides of that too. And so it's just, it's interesting for some of the issues that they talk about, I think, because I'm like, I know a Democratic candidate that would run on that right now. Absolutely. But would every single one of them run on it? Is the question, I think. Right?

[Alex Kanchrowitz]

Hi, this is Alex Kanchrowitz. I'm the host of Big Technology Podcast, a longtime reporter and an on air contributor to cnbc. And if you're like me, you're trying to figure out how artificial intelligence is changing the business world and our lives. So each week on Big Technology, I bring on key actors from companies building AI tech and outsiders trying to influence it, asking where this is all going. They come from places like Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon and plenty more. So if you want to be smart with your wallet, your career choices, in meetings with your colleagues and at dinner parties, listen to Big Technology Podcast. Wherever you get your podcasts.

[Anderson Clayton]

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[Anderson Clayton]

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[Rachel Jambaza]

All right, now let's listen to what the women had to say a little bit different.

[Young Female Voter 4]

There are certain things that come with the way in which women and men vote that differ concerning the patriarchy. Because for us, we are kind of implicated by Trump's policies in a way, especially when it comes to abortion access. Like, even though people might not, like women might not agree with abortion in itself, some of the stuff that is within that bill is just for gender affirming care. Like if you have cancer, you have, you had breast cancer and you had your, one of your breasts cut off, you would need to take some of those medicines that he's banning.

[Young Female Voter 1]

He disparages entire like races of people based off of maybe like a small group. And he will say this like on live television, he will say Somalis are trash on live television and he doesn't care how many Somalians are in United States and who hear that and might think, oh, our president hates us. I just think he's very carelessly, carelessly handles everything in my opinion.

[Young Female Voter 2]

My critique of the conservatives would have to be things that I feel like particularly affect me, like as a woman, like the abortion, their views on abortion totally oppose. And two, with the new law or the bill about the medical professionals not being able to take out loans up to, I think it was $300,000 for four years. And that's just going to affect so many medical students. We're going to have a shortage of doctors in the long run. And for Democrats, at least in my state, I think it would be like the taxes issue. I feel like the Dems are very lenient on things and it ends up affecting our taxes and we have to pay more and everything is going up.

[Young Female Voter 4]

Donald Trump has been haunting my life

[Anderson Clayton]

since I was 12.

[Young Female Voter 4]

Okay? So I've disliked him since 2016. Personally, I give him an F because he's terrible at US Foreign policy.

[Young Female Voter 5]

I mean, the cost of living. Like, I mean, you. Dang, you're spending your whole paycheck just to live somewhere. You barely got any, like, money left for food and stuff like that and other costs. So they definitely need to look into, like, hiring the minimum wage. They really need to address, like, how much people are getting paid because, like, that's why it's a lot of mental health issues going on. People are depressed. It's really like all our issues are like, revolved around money. So I feel like they definitely need to look into that because I feel like we would just have a better state of living and a better state of mind.

[Young Female Voter 4]

He was running on the fact that he would release the Epstein files. He was running on that we'll release the Martin Luther King files, the JFK files, and Epstein files. So then he released them and then took out everything that had to do with him. Basically.

[Young Female Voter 2]

I don't know how we're not shutting down the fact that RFK Jr. Is like, spewing nonsense, like straight nonsense about like, things that are not. Have been proven to not be correct with the Tylenol issue with health care is just spreading straight nonsense. He was talking about how he was. He was doing coke off twitch seats on. In front of everybody on television. Like, I just. That's just. I can't believe it's happening.

[Young Female Voter 6]

I do feel like there is a lot of just not any, like, sort of like straight applause of like, who we're deporting and who we're keeping in. Like, I just feel like they just. ICE is just being sent out to like, wipe out even like US Citizens. They like, take them and then they figure out if they have a citizenship and then they release them. So, like, and the way they're even like, arresting these people is inhumane, to be honest.

[Rachel Jambaza]

Okay. A lot in there again, and a lot of it pretty rational. And I want to just come back to this idea. The most frustrating thing that I hear over and over again is when someone will say, oh, young people don't vote because they don't care. No, we just heard countless examples of how they do care. And Anderson, I'm sure you see this all the time. They're so well informed. They just went through a bunch of different, whether it was policies or pieces of legislation or current events, etc. And they do care. They just don't necessarily see leaders who are responding to these, what they might feel are atrocities or massive scandals appropriately. And that creates a lot of disillusionment. But what did you make from all of that and why? What do you see resonating with young voters looking forward in 2026 and 2028 and why?

[Anderson Clayton]

I feel like I'm the example of Joe in Little Women when she's like, women, you know, like, thank you, I love my men and all, but I'm like, after I heard those, I was like, man. And the first person I heard talking, I was like, ah, she just. This just makes sense right now. And that is just the, the beauty I feel like of, of young women in this space. But the most frustrating thing for me is when I have older folks that come up to me and they're like, I'm so pissed off that young people won't vote right now. And my number one answer to them or my ask to them is like, well, when did you get engaged with politics? Like, when did you start, like, when was it your, like when did you start paying attention? And I'll be real with you if you're not a Vietnam veteran. I was fighting against the war type person in this country right now. Most everybody will look at me and they'll say, oh, when I was older. And I'm like, yeah, because you had the time, you had the ability to think about something else other than the day to day in your life and just trying to, to make it through with the last person we heard talk about, everything revolves around money and whether or not you have it, whether or not you can live a comfortable life right now, whether or not you can afford to stay like, keep your family afloat. And I think so many young people are just trying to face that alone, that like politics is secondary to them until we can force them to be like, hey, the thing that you are frustrated with about money in your everyday life, if you're voting, it can change that. Like if we're able to actually, actually connect the dots and alleviate that for people that the impact of their pocketbook, especially for young folks, because that is when you don't have a retirement fund, you're not looking at your 401k every day. You don't know, like, you may not have one. Right. Most jobs don't offer that right now for, for a lot of their folks. And I just, I think there is a lack of empathy for young people right now in this country. How they're, how they're being brought up in it in some ways and just like what they're expected to focus on, while they do feel like the world around them is on fire. And for me, it is also just like, like, you know, coaching people to understand that and coaching older folks to also have those conversations in a way that's not like berating their, their daughter or their niece or their nephew if they won't vote or something like that. Because it's like, well, how are you having that conversation? And sometimes it shouldn't be you having it. Like, it should be their peer having it with them. It should be their friend or someone in their network. That is because those are the most trusted voices. No one really wants to do what their parents told them to do. I certainly didn't when I was 13 years old, or 18 for that matter. So it just like keeps going. Nothing that your parents say are cool at that point in time. And I wish people would give young folks the benefit of the doubt to your point, that they care and that they're smarter than we give them credit for often.

[Alex Kanchrowitz]

Hi, this is Alex Canceroitz. I'm the host of Big Technology Podcast, a longtime reporter and an on air contributor to cnbc. And if you're like me, you're trying to figure out how artificial intelligence is changing the business world and our lives. So each week on Big Technology, I bring on key actors from companies building AI tech and outsiders trying to influence it, asking where this is all going. They come from places like Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon, and plenty more. So if you want to be smart with your wallet, your career choices, in meetings with your colleagues and at dinner parties, listen to Big Technology Podcast. Wherever you get your podcasts.

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[Rachel Jambaza]

And so what do you see along those lines resonating with young people looking to 2026 and 2028 in terms of ways to engage electorally?

[Anderson Clayton]

I mean one thing that we're really trying to do is make it more fun to get involved with politics again. I go back to like the typical ways that you can get involved in a campaign are door knocking and phone banking. And while I still fully believe in those avenues of engagement, we're also trying to say like, how do you just build a sip and paint for a bunch of your friends to come to? And we invite them to talk about politics and know who Anita Earl of People this year in North Carolina are going to know who a US Senator is in Roy Cooper because he is going to blanket the airwaves. But our Supreme Court justice candidate with Anita Earls, like it is going to be much more person to person introducing her to people through your networks in that case. And I'm trying to be like, how do we get creative about the events that we do? I go back to having a drink in your hand all the time, but it can be non alcoholic beverage in that way too. But we did like sip and size, which is just like folks gathering together at a local brewery or a local business. And then also thinking about like my Teen Dems and my Young Dems. And so the three auxiliary organizations that I have in the state right now, my Teen Dems, my College Dems and my Young Dems, really helping people know that they exist because the best people to organize young folks are other young people. And when my teenagers, when they're like, oh my God, I could be a part of a statewide organization, they are excited to get involved because I think to your point, it's like ladder of engagement. Not a lot of people know where to start. And so it's saying like, hey, come sign up, be on this newsletter and come hear about the events that we're doing and get politically engaged that way too. And so trying to be creative. And if you're somebody out there right now in North Carolina and you're like Anderson, I've got an idea, please email me. My email's on the state party website. Like I would love to know how you feel like we could bring politics to you because that's what I want to do this year. But not just this year throughout. So we're already looking at how do we do that in 27 and into 28 too?

[Rachel Jambaza]

Yeah. And maybe this analog revival will work in your favor because young people are really sick of, of just scrolling all the time and want in person activation. So there you go. Okay, I'm always struck, and you just explained this in many ways by how real you are in an industry that attracts literally everything but that. How do you strike that balance? And what are your hobbies? How do you blend your personal life with your professional life?

[Anderson Clayton]

Oh, Lord, I don't know. Sometimes. I'll be honest with you, Rachel, my mouth gets me in trouble because I think I could be too honest in this business occasionally. But I do. Like, I think we need to have more people in politics that like, genuinely want to understand other people, because I think a lot of the time empathy is something that we lack so much. I hear it now in our party, even for folks that have voted for Donald Trump three times over again, folks that are like, I will never talk to those voters in my life. And I'm like, I'd pull up a chair and have a conversation with them any day of my life. And partly because I will never lose the ability of wanting to learn, but also because I want those folks to know that somebody who they think probably hates them for doing that never will. And like, I want to. To distort the way in which people think about what is a Democrat and how have they always been painted to me in some ways. And so I try to think about that the most that I can. And also to your point, like, or just to that point alone, a lot of young people really value the authenticity. So, like, when I was in those college campuses or on those college campuses, I cursed like a sailor. Like, I was in that class and I was just letting my mouth rip. And I looked at the professor and I said, hey, I feel like I'm around family right now. Like, if this becomes a problem, you let me know. But I was just, I was being my real self with them. And I think that there was a girl that walked me afterwards and she was like, I didn't know you could do that. And I was like, do what? And she said, be in office and curse. And I was like, I didn't either until I did it, you know, like in, in some ways. And I think the more that people can see themselves in someone like that, it's just helpful. But my hobbies wise, I love reality tv. I just finished Love is Blind the reunion because I had yet to do that last night. And I think that sort of p myself out of the comfort zone. So I go to a lot of music concerts and stuff like that. My best friend used to work for iHeartradio and so he was one of the folks that worked on the DJ set and stuff and he is in California now and so whenever I can we try to meet up and go to a concert together if it allows for it. I will say we've only been to like one in the last two years but it still is on my bucket list to get back out and do more.

[Rachel Jambaza]

But yeah, what was the concert?

[Anderson Clayton]

We went to see Kelsey Ballerini and I love her. She's fantastic. Also again like country Democrat for that matter. In some ways at least in my mind she's never said that out loud so no shade to Kelsey there. But I'm like the way her politics works and the way that she talks about things I just appreciate. And also a shout out to Maren Morris in that capacity too. So you know good eggs well Anderson

[Rachel Jambaza]

Clayton, I don't think anyone has a better read on how young people are feeling about politics right now than you. So thank you for sharing with us and thanks for coming on the Focus group pod. It's been a pleasure to chatting with you.

[Anderson Clayton]

Thanks Rachel.

[Rachel Jambaza]

Thanks again to Anderson and thanks for listening. Feel free to rate and review the show on Apple Podcast, subscribe to The Bulwark on YouTube and become a Bulwark plus member at TheBull Work.com Sarah will be back next week.

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