Ken Martin Wins Election to Lead National Democratic Party

Ken Martin, vice chair of the Democratic National Committee and head of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor (DFL) Party, won the election to become the new chair of the DNC.
The DNC held the election during its winter meeting, and a candidate must garner votes from a majority of the 448 DNC members to win. These members include chairs and vice chairs from each state’s Democratic Party, elected delegates from all 50 states, Democratic officials and others.
Martin will replace Jaime Harrison, who has served as DNC chair since 2021 and declined to seek reelection this year after Democrats lost the presidency and control of the Senate in November.
Martin’s voting rights record and experience
Martin has been the chair of the Minnesota DFL, the state’s branch of the Democratic Party, since 2011. When he took over the party, it had just lost the state house and one of the longest-held Democratic seats in Congress.
Under Martin’s tenure, Democrats have won every statewide election and secured two trifectas. Many of these Democrats worked to strengthen voting rights.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was elected to his first term in 2018 and reelected in 2022.
In 2023 and 2024, the Minnesota Legislature passed and Walz signed multiple pro-voting laws, including the Democracy for the People Act, a bill that restored voting rights to over 50,000 Minnesotans with felony convictions and the Minnesota Voting Rights Act.
Earlier this month, Walz endorsed Martin for DNC chair.
“In Minnesota, Ken has built a national model for how to elect Democrats in a competitive state,” Walz said. “I have seen Ken’s leadership in action, and it’s exactly what we need from our next D.N.C. chair.”
Sen. Amy Klobuchar was elected in 2006 and reelected in 2012, 2018 and 2024. She introduced numerous voting rights bills in the Senate, including the Election Worker Protection Act, the Same Day Voter Registration Act, the Election Mail Act, three bills addressing the use of AI in elections, and a version of the Freedom to Vote Act in 2021.
Since 2017, Martin has also served as the president of the Association of State Democratic Committees and as a vice chair of the DNC.
The Democratic Party chairs of California, Florida, Georgia and Rhode Island endorsed Martin ahead of the election.
How the DNC impacts elections
The DNC represents the national Democratic Party, coordinating efforts with all of the state parties to set a party platform and elect candidates in races of all levels of government.
The committee has a hotline and online resources with voter information and initiatives to mobilize minority voters and young voters. Also, the DNC works with campaigns across the country, helping candidates fundraise and strategize how to best reach voters using extensive research and data.
The DNC also gets involved in litigation. In 2024, the DNC filed nine voting rights and election lawsuits and filed briefs in many other cases. The committee filed several Election Day lawsuits to extend polling place hours and brought a case challenging the Cobb County, Georgia election board’s failure to send mail-in ballots to thousands of voters.
Martin is now at the helm of the national party, and on his campaign website, he said he “wants to bring the [Minnesota DFL’s] model to the DNC.”
Watch Martin’s interview with Marc here.
Read about his thoughts on the 2024 election and what he’d do differently.