Democrats host town halls to hear from voters, fire up supporters — but is their message resonating?

Bethlehem, pa. – In the “National City Hall” on Thursday, conducted by the Democratic National Committee, in a church located in an area of ​​Pennsylvania, that the Democrats lost to the Republicans in 2024, party leaders fired the crowd when the Republicans of the White House, and the congress over Medicaid.

Mayors are among the strategies that the Democrats use to try to fire their base against Trump’s White House – but the participants there and other events say they are still looking for the Democratic Party to take republicans more directly.

DNC chairman Ken Martin, speaking at Bethlehem’s event, called President Donald Trump and key advisor Elon Musk “Fear” by accumulating the crowd, framing the work of the duo in strict conditions.

“There is nothing moral about what these cowards do. There is nothing moral about what we saw today in Washington, DC, such as Donald Musk – Donald Trump and his president, President Musk, have decided to do, signing that the executive order for the Ministry of Education, which will have a large impact on the community Saying the crowd, and Amidst Boos to Trump in this country in this country, “says Martin, says the crowd, and Amidst is in Trump’s community across the country.

And Maryland Democratic Representative Jamie Raskin, who received one of the strongest applause of one of the participants, took an old tone: “Don’t let anyone tell you that we are in a constitutional crisis,” Raskin said.

“Because this is too passive sounding. This is too ambiguous. This is an attack on the United States Constitution and we will defend the Constitution of the United States!”

Republicans face fierce discounts in personal events

The Democratic Party claims that it holds these mayoralties as a way to hear directly from voters.

“The purpose of these mayoralties is not to spread our message, but to hear from the people in this country at the moment who are facing a deep and serious impact on their own lives, in their neighborhoods and communities, because of this administration,” Martin told ABC News on Thursday after the City Hall.

But Martin and others, explicitly, also emphasize the idea that Democrats also host these events, while Republicans withdrawn from hosting personal events or face fierce discounts from voters when they do. Some of the strongest applause in the church on Thursday came when the speakers criticized a representative of the Ryan Mackenzie region – who in 2024 closely turned the place laid by Democrat Susan Wild.

Arno Armstrong, a spokesman for Mackenzie, told ABC News in a statement on Wednesday that Mackenzie answered questions about personal events and would manage a telephone bunny on Thursday night so that more people could speak with congressman, including disabled people or elderly people who could struggle to do it for a personal event.

During this phone, the Mackenzie Town Hall said, “This is the best way I found that it has reached literally thousands of people at once and will be able to have this kind of conversation.”

Disappointed Democrats

Mayors come when democratic voters show disappointment with their party.

A recent CNN/SSRS poll, taken in early March, found that 52% of Democrats or Democratic independent people believe that the Democrats’ leadership takes the party in the wrong direction and that 57% believe that the party should work mainly to “stop the Republican program”.

As they waited outside to enter the mayor’s office, some residents of the Lehi Valley region in Pennsylvania told ABC News that President Donald Trump’s actions hit the home or bother them – but so far they feel disappointed with the broader democratic answer.

“Many Mixed Feelings” to Trump’s Democrats’ reaction

Carole Ostfeld, a retired Altenown teacher, Pennsylvania, came, wearing a sign saying “Medicaid hands.” She and her husband David told Abc News that they had gone to the mayoralty to protest Trump and Musk, including Trump’s actions with the Ministry of Education.

But asked how they feel about the democratic response of Trump’s administration, Carol Ostfeld replied: “I have many mixed feelings -“

Her husband added, “It should be more.”

Asked if the Democrats’ messages resonate with them, Carroll Osteld said it was – but “as they say, you can’t fight the mayoralty” as Republicans are in power.

Another present, Anne Frechet from Easton, Pennsylvania, said the news of Trump signed an order to dismantle the Ministry of Education, which came that day, struck near the home. “I have a son at a college who took advantage of Pell Grant,” she told ABC News. “And I am afraid that this Pel Grant will disappear, that such means will disappear. He is on Medicaid, I think he can lose his health insurance. There are so many things.”

But the wider democratic answer also disappointed her. While she praised some individual legislators, including Raskin, she added: “I think in general the Democrats, they are not – I am a Democrat, but it seems that my party is not receiving the message that was betrayed last November. I would like people to face what is being done.”

Firing of supporters

This said that the mayoralty itself had many measures – or at least democratic speakers were able to fire their supporters.

All the slats were filled, with some present standing on the back or sides of the sanctuary; And the crowd repeatedly gave the thunderstorms to the speakers – especially when Raskin talks about taking Trump or former democratic reporter Susan Wilde criticizing the acting representative.

People paid attention as the members of the audience shared their own stories and questions, and then applauded them warmly, cheering on their peers in a clear display of support.

During a part of a question and answer to the City Hall, the attendees expressed concerns about the future of Medicaid, educational programs and other issues.

Another present, Terry Neyfert, told the crowd that she had lived in Bethlehem almost throughout her life and was disabled after falling into a grocery store, which changed the trajectory of her life. She said she had succeeded in receiving her diploma and supporting her family through Medicare, food banks, and social security.

“If they cut Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps … I would lose everything,” Neyfert told the crowd.

Neyfert received applause from the audience, while others present went up to her after the event accused to thank her for sharing her story.

Asked by ABC News after the mayor’s office how he feels about the reaction of the Democrats of the Trump Administration, Neyfert – like other present – focuses on the way forward.

“It seems to be a fight and a difficult battle … More public protest, more marches and congress have to raise his big boy pants and start doing his job,” Nifert said.

Going on the road

Some Democrats or allies brought into Democrats take different from the mayoralties-they go along the way.

Senator Bernie Sanders, a progressive independent, who deals with Democrats, has been on the road in weeks with what he calls the “fight against the oligarchy”, making rallies for rallies both in the right and left -handed areas. The Democratic Party has supported its efforts by redirecting social media publications from Sanders on the tour.

Outside Sanders’ tour, some present said they were disappointed with Trump’s response.

“They should be a little more difficult,” a participant in the rally told Jonathan Carl at the Denver event. Another was more darkened: “Stop being a bunch of doors.”

But – as a sign that rallies may be a successful tactic for Democrats to reach their base – they attract thousands of people. The appearance of Sander in Denver, along with the reputation, Alexandria Okasio-Cortez, DN.Y., led more than 30,000 present.

Sanders said this was the biggest rally that was once hosted -more than the rallies of his two presidential tracks.

Sanders himself has his own criticism of the Democratic Party, telling Carl in an interview with ABC News this week that Democrats should do more for working people when they have control of the Senate.

“And since then, I think the Democrats have been effective in unifying the American people by stopping Trump’s movement to oligarchy and authoritarianism? No, I don’t,” Sanders told Carl.

Donna Brazil, former DNC chairman and ABC News associate, told this week after Sanders’ interview, “Bernie Sanders fills the void, the main void left, of course, the defeat of Kamala Harris by Donald Trump. This void should be filled in blue areas.

This emptiness is the one that Democrats hope to fill in with these events.

Martin, asked by ABC News after the City Hall of Bethlehem, if he believes that the Democrats’ messages will resonate in Republican regions or in the Democrats themselves, said this was not really the question.

“It’s not really about resonating the message,” Martin said. “What is about listening to people. Hearing the worries of Americans right now across the country who deserve to be heard, right?”

Martin added later: “We will fill the void for them and talk to more people in this country.”

ABC News, Isabella Murray, Jonathan Karl, Meghan Mstry and Quinn Scanlan contribution to this report.