Warning: This may contain some strong language
This diary is more out of frustration than trying to blame any individual or group of people. In the past decade, it seems that the Republican party has found its base of voters. Gun rights activists and evangelical Christians (anti-women voters). These are voters that will come out every single election. Even if it's for a city council race, they show up like clockwork or will send in an absentee ballot that they hate so much. These two groups of people have been responsible for many Republican victories a little over the last decade. The second part is that they are more focused on the larger picture. They will even vote for a candidate they can't stand to get the desired results.
In higher turnout years. It seems to me that only three things drive democratic voter turnout. There is a once-in-a-lifetime candidate that gets people excited. The second reason is the democratic base is pissed off. Even then, that's not a sure thing. Wisconsin's 2011 recall was an example of that. 49% of voters, according to a poll by NPR, 49% of voters are more likely to vote now because the Supreme Court has decided to overturn roe v wade. Will that be enough to get over the two bases stated above? The third thing that drives democratic turnout is the feeling of inclusion. Like someone is acknowledging them. If you have a portion of the base that is disenfranchised, they will vote independent, not vote at all, or even worse, vote for the Republican.
Warning: This next part is not to irritate or upset anyone. It is just how I see things, and Like you, I am afraid of what's to come.
It seems to me that the Democratic Party is split up into four factions
Blue Dog Democrats
In 2008, there was an astonishing almost sixty members of the U.S. House. Now there are nineteen and about three in the senate. Most of them are fiscally conservative but socially liberal. In the area where I am from, there are a lot of citizens with this philosophy. The Blue Dog Coalition was meant to help Democrats win in conservative areas. Examples are Congresswomen Stephanie Murphy and Senator Kyrsten Sinema.
Moderates or Clinton Democrats
According to FiveThirtyEight, these are mostly considered pro-business but liberal on cultural issues. Ron Kind from Wisconsin, Tim Ryan in Ohio, and Connor Lamb from Pennsylvania are examples of this. Most of them represent purple districts. Kind means a lot of farmland and works across party lines to advance agricultural issues, especially with then-Congressman Jeff Flake. Bill Clinton worked with a Republican Congress that was trying to impeach him.
Center-Left Liberals
The Obama-Biden-Harris ticket is a direct reflection of the center-left. They are descendants of the Roosevelt-Kennedy-Johnson liberalism. Square Deal, New Deal, 19th Amendment, and Obamacare are advancements in the liberal cause.
Progressives.
The progressives model themselves after Progressive icon Bob La Follette. They espouse the message of the progressive movement—a $15 minimum wage, the second bill of rights, and Medicare for all. Senator Elizabeth Warren, Ed Markey, and Congresswomen Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are examples of this.
Conclusion
As you can see, we have a big family of Democrats. The problem with our family is we have trouble getting them under one roof. Republican factions include racist and crazy or super crazy. Every time one section gets annoyed with another faction, we end up in the same place—the minority. Then we get justices like Kavanaugh and Gorsuch voted in by crazies like Ron Johnson and Ted Cruz. Mark Kelly doesn't support the Green New Deal, and Kyrsten Sinema doesn't support a $15 minimum wage. However. Mark Kelly favors gun control, and Sinema favors advancing rights for LGBTQ causes. Ron Kind didn't support Nancy Pelosi, but he worked with Jeff Flake to help farmers. Tim Ryan ran against Nancy Pelosi for House Speaker, but he could be the next Senator from Ohio.
The path to a more sustainable majority could include a blue dog in Florida or Montana, a moderate in Wisconsin or Missouri, a center-left in Ohio or Indiana, and a progressive in Vermont. I worry that if we do this one size fits all approach, we will have most of the base stay home, and we will elect more people like Josh Hawley and Marjorie Taylor Greene. Did anyone watch that Wyoming House debate?