In Minneapolis this week, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) kicked off a pivotal debate that could reshape the party’s path to the White House in 2028. At the heart of the discussion: which state—or states—should get the coveted first crack at influencing the nomination of the next Democratic presidential candidate. The stakes are high, and the outcome could send ripples through party strategy, state economies, and the national political landscape for years to come.
On August 26, 2025, DNC members gathered amid a sense of urgency and introspection. After a bruising 2024 election cycle that saw Democrats lose both the presidency and control of Congress to Donald Trump and the Republicans, party leaders were determined not to repeat past mistakes. DNC Chair Ken Martin set the tone early, declaring, “The presidential calendar process starts today.” According to the Washington Examiner, Martin promised “a rigorous, effective, fair calendar and process” for the possible wave of White House hopefuls. The message was clear: the party’s approach to picking its nominee was due for a serious overhaul.
The calendar question is anything but trivial. As the Associated Press explained, the order of a party’s state-by-state nomination process can shape not just the fortunes of presidential candidates, but also those of the states themselves. Early contests bring a flood of media attention, campaign spending, and political capital—prizes that states like Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Nevada have fiercely guarded for decades. But the winds of change are blowing through the DNC.
James Roosevelt and Minyon Moore, co-chairs of the DNC’s powerful Rules and Bylaws Committee, announced plans for a September meeting to formalize how states can petition for an early spot on the 2028 calendar. This is a marked shift from the 2024 process, when then-President Joe Biden upended tradition by vaulting South Carolina—home to a large Black Democratic electorate—into the first primary slot, bumping Iowa and New Hampshire from their historic positions. New Hampshire, which has a state law requiring it to hold the nation’s first primary, responded with a write-in campaign for Biden. Iowa, meanwhile, is threatening to go rogue in 2028 if it gets skipped yet again.
But with Biden no longer in the mix, the field is wide open—and so is the calendar. According to AP, several states are openly lobbying for the chance to go first. North Carolina and Georgia, both Southern states with growing Black and Latino populations and genuine battleground credentials, have emerged as early favorites to supplant South Carolina. Nevada Democrats, for their part, released a memo on August 27, 2025, arguing that their state should win the top spot if the party “is serious about winning back working-class voters.” Hilary Barrett, executive director of the Nevada Democratic Party, wrote, “Given the challenges we are facing to rebuild our party brand, we cannot afford to have overwhelmingly college-educated, white, or less competitive states kick off the process of selecting our party’s nominee.”
Former DNC Chair Jaime Harrison, a South Carolina native, isn’t giving up without a fight. “If you take a look at every presidential primary we’ve had over the last 20 years, South Carolina has been a better predictor than Nevada, Iowa or New Hampshire in terms of picking the eventual nominee,” he told AP. “And that is because our people are not ideological. … No, a majority of Black voters are not conservative or progressive. They’re pragmatic.” Harrison added, “I think it’s a big slap in the face if you say that you don’t even give South Carolina an opportunity to be first in the nation at least one time in an open primary process, right?”
The DNC’s new leadership, including Martin and Vice Chair Shasti Conrad, signaled a willingness to break from tradition. “We’re not as tied to the way we’ve always done things,” Conrad told AP. Conrad, who also chairs the Washington state Democratic Party and is new to the Rules and Bylaws Committee, emphasized the importance of states with large communities of color playing a prominent role in the nomination process. Martin echoed this sentiment, stating, “Clearly, the most reliable constituency of the Democratic Party are Black voters, and they will have a prominent role in the selection of our nominee.”
Behind the scenes, DNC members are weighing not just demographics but also strategic impact. Stuart Appelbaum, a New York DNC member and chair of the Labor Council, told the Washington Examiner, “I think that we have to take a careful look at the story we tell by which states go first. What is it that we want to elevate in our decision-making? And I think there are questions about the demographics of different states. I know, for me, it’s important that we highlight states with a strong union presence.” He added that putting battleground states earlier in the calendar could be key to Democratic success in the general election.
The process won’t be settled overnight. The Rules and Bylaws Committee will start deliberations in September, with additional meetings stretching into spring 2026. New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley, a rare veteran on the committee, noted that his state will hold the first primary no matter what the DNC decides. “Everyone has the opportunity to make their case,” Buckley said to AP. “New states, interesting states, will make their case. And I have faith that the process will be fair.”
Amid all the inside baseball, Democrats are also grappling with big-picture challenges. The party is planning a mini-convention before the 2026 elections to energize congressional and presidential campaigns. DNC members like Roxanne Brown and Celina Vasquez stressed the need for deep voter education, particularly on the Trump administration’s policies, such as cuts to Pell grants and healthcare. “People have to know what is happening,” Brown said to the Washington Examiner. “We need deep education to fight back and agitation to get people to push back once they learn that their lives have been forever changed by this administration that does not have their backs.”
As the 2028 field takes shape, several governors and former lawmakers are making opposition to Trump a central plank of their national profiles. California’s Gavin Newsom, Illinois’ JB Pritzker, Maryland’s Wes Moore, and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg are among those crisscrossing early states, raising money, and sharpening their messages. DNC members, however, remain uncommitted, with Evan Koch of Idaho noting, “There are plenty of others, and they’re going to share their ideas and put them out there and try to gain enough support.”
One thing is certain: the 2028 primary process will be more open and competitive, with multiple debates to help narrow the field. “If we keep saying we’re going to be a working-class party and talk to working-class people, our structure and our processes then have to reflect the fact that we want them to participate,” Ron Harris, a DNC member from Minnesota, told the Washington Examiner.
The DNC’s calendar debate is more than a bureaucratic reshuffling—it’s a test of the party’s values, strategy, and ability to adapt after a tough defeat. As members weigh tradition against innovation, and representation against electability, the decisions made in the coming months could define the Democratic Party for a generation.
