ABSTRACT
The Democratic party suffered a major defeat in 1980, significant enough to pose the question: does this election signal the demise of its status as America's majority—or, better put, plurality—political party? The chapter discusses five points central to understanding the 1980 election. It analyses the 1980 elections from the viewpoint of a Democratic strategist. The Democratic strategy enjoyed mixed results until the Cleveland debate. The greatest failure occurred in improving the perception of the president's job performance. Throughout the fall there was little disastrous news, but also precious little positive news from events or administration actions. Four factors are important when speculating on the 1982 House elections: the success of Ronald Reagan, reapportionment, resources, and the Democratic appeal. The congressional results seem at least as much an overflow of the Carter repudiation as they do an ideological or partisan GOP triumph. John Kennedy and Jimmy Carter both probably could not have been elected with debates.
