Ohio Democrat Rep. Tim Ryan, who is challenging Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi for her leadership post, said he’s worried Democrats will start to become content with failure if the party continues down the same path.
Ryan formally announced his bid against Pelosi shortly after Election Day, citing a need for new leadership if Democrats want to remain relevant.
“Winners win, Wolf, and we’ve got to start winning,” he told host Wolf Blitzer during an appearance on CNN Tuesday. “I’m worried that the Democratic party is going to be accepting of being, of failing, of not figuring out how to win again and we have to do that.”
Ryan said his biggest issue with Pelosi is the hit in numbers the party has taken under her watch.
“We’re not winning. Like I said, we’re down 60-some seats since 2010 — the smallest number in the Democratic caucus in 87 years, Wolf,” he said. “We’ve gotten slaughtered throughout the country — two-thirds of state legislatures, 33 governors, lost everything in Washington, D.C., we’ll soon lose the Supreme Court after Trump makes his appointments,” he said. “We’ve got to hit the reset button and start over.”
Democrats were expected to win back as many as 25 seats, yet only picked up a handful on Nov. 8. A number of members of the party are pointing fingers at Pelosi, saying they need fresh leadership if they want to win back the majority.
Pelosi pushed back leadership votes earlier this month at the encouragement of her colleagues in the House, calling for a delay to give lawmakers time to reflect on what went wrong on Election Day.
The Democratic leadership election is slated to take place Wednesday.
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