David Hogg’s DNC Election Reflects Democrats’ Masculinity Problem

David Hogg, the gun control activist and Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting survivor, was recently elected as the vice chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC). The 22-year-old’s election, which garnered 214.5 votes.

While Hogg’s election is being presented as a strategically advantageous for youth engagement within the party, it also suggests that the Democratic Party is still out of touch with a key demographic—working-class and middle-class men, particularly those who feel alienated by the party’s increasingly progressive agenda.

Democrats have long struggled to connect with male voters, particularly since the rise of President Donald Trump. The Republican Party, under Trump’s leadership, found success in appealing to disaffected working-class men who felt overlooked by the Democrats’ messaging.

CNN’s Dana Bash acknowledged the phenomenon while covering the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, comparing it to the Republican National Convention held a month prior.

“2016 and now is very different campaigns, very different female candidates but they are doing so in trying to put forward a male figure, Tim Walz being one of them, Doug Emhoff last night who can speak to men out there who might not be the sort of testosterone laden, gun-toting kind of guy who wants to listen to Hulk Hogan and the kind of players that came out at the RNC.”

While the Democrats have earned a reputation for demonizing traditional masculinity, men have increasingly turned to Donald Trump and the Republican Party as they focus on more practical day-to-day issues like the economy and crime, while the Democrats have allowed their platform to become overrun with identity politics, often focusing on women, non whites, and members of the LGBTQ community.

Leading up to the election, the top three issues for voters were consistently listed as the economy, immigration and abortion, with abortion being the only issue that voters trusted Harris more than Trump on. Harris squandered the serious opportunities she had to engage with men by ultimately declining podcast interviews with Dave Ramsey and Joe Rogan, with massive male audiences, who both wanted to have discussions about the economy and immigration.

After Harris announced Tim Walz as her running mate, Democrats celebrated, sharing pictures of him in hunting gear and coaching football, confident he’d be able to reach “salt of the Earth” men and midwesterners — ignoring that despite superficial relatability, he had no values in common with these voters. He put a 90% tax on Nicotine pouches — beloved by working and middle class men, turned Minnesota into a sanctuary state for minors seeking transgender surgeries against the wills of their parents, and embellished his service record to legitimize his calls for gun control.

It should come as no surprise that Tim Walz endorsed David Hogg for DNC Vice Chair.

Hogg, a vocal advocate for gun control after surviving the Parkland school shooting in 2018, has become a polarizing figure. While he is celebrated by many in progressive circles, his focus on gun reform and outspoken activism often clashes with the sensibilities of voters who prioritize Second Amendment rights. These voters—many of whom are male—are unlikely to relate to Hogg’s rhetoric or his position on issues such as gun control, which many in this demographic view as an attack on their fundamental freedoms.

Ahead of the election, a pro-Harris ad was released featuring a series of men rattling off their masculine credentials like their impressive deadlifts and affinity for fixing cars juxtaposed with feminist messaging about their sensitivity and “support for women” in different traditionally masculine settings like gyms, auto shops and farms.

“I’m man enough to enjoy barrel proof bourbon. I’m man enough to cook my steak rare. I’m man enough to deadlift 500 and braid the shit out of my daughter’s hair. You think I’m afraid to rebuild a carburetor? I eat carburetors for breakfast. I ain’t afraid of bears…and I’ll tell you another thing I’m sure as s**t not afraid of: women.”

The ad was widely mocked on social media, only emphasizing Democrats’ masculinity problem to many viewers, as it seemed more like an absurd, overwrought parody of “real men” than an ad meant to genuinely appeal to them.

This is a democrat commercial for Kamala Harris telling us that "real men" vote for Kamala.

This is so cringe it is almost mental illness …

This is what they think men are … pic.twitter.com/gbdaWO2e8O

— Gender Studies for Men (@JohnDavisJDLLM) October 11, 2024

“They want to control their bodies? I say go for it. Want to use IVF to start a family? I’m not afraid of families. You want to be childless cat ladies? Have all the cats you want. A woman wants to be president? Well I hope she has the guts to look me right in the eye and accept my full-throated endorsement. I’m man enough to support women. Man enough to not ban young women from reading Little Women. I’m man enough to be emotional in front of my wife. I’m man enough to tell you that I cry at Love, Actually…but I’m sick of so-called men domineering, belittling and controlling women just so they can feel more powerful.”

David Hogg, with no muscle mass, soft facial features, and his scolding disposition, would have fit right in on the set for this commercial.

While Hogg, has become a hero to those who advocate for gun control, his message is often seen as elitist and disconnected from the concerns of average male voters. His personal narrative—surviving a school shooting and advocating for stricter gun laws—has made him a central figure in the national gun control movement. However, it has also made him a divisive one. For many men, particularly in rural or working-class communities, Hogg represents a liberal agenda that they associate with the cultural elite and urban progressives who do not understand their lives or their values.

Men—especially those in swing states or rural communities—are not likely to rally behind a figure like Hogg, who represents a progressive, youth-centric vision of the party. Instead, they are more likely to resonate with political figures who speak to their values of individualism, economic opportunity, and personal freedom.

In the long run, the Democratic Party will need to recalibrate its approach if it hopes to attract the male voters who remain critical to its success. Without a more balanced approach that speaks to the concerns of men—particularly those who feel disconnected from the party’s increasingly progressive agenda—Democrats will continue to struggle in key battleground states where working-class men hold the power to sway elections.

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The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.