On the Listening Tour Bus

Listening tours hold great promise, but Massachusetts provides a mediocre example

By Martha Merson

In the post-2024 election era, I’ve heard a few calls for listening tours. How exciting, then, to find an email in my inbox from the MassDems announcing a listening tour with sessions for each of the nine congressional districts. Where do I meet the bus? I wondered. It’s a tour, right, ostensibly with Democratic leaders. I could picture Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey flanked by our House delegation. I hadn’t seen Governor Maura Healey, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, or AG Andrea Campbell in person since the 2022 campaign. I quickly opened the email and signed up.

Well, the listening tour didn’t quite unfold the way I envisioned. I’m not sure who planned it, but if a tour is planned for your state, I recommend volunteering for the planning committee. Don’t leave the design to consultants and party leaders or you might find yourself disappointed, as I was. Here are my takeaways.

No “Tour” and Limited “Listening”

I don’t know why you’d choose the word “tour” for a series of Zoom meetings. To be sure, the weather in New England in January and February might have depressed turnout, but a hybrid event would have signaled a real commitment by Mass Dems to meet constituents. And then there was each Zoom’s “two-minute limit.”

I always bristle at the two-minute limit for public testimony. The limit signals immediately that “listening” is not a serious commitment, it’s a symbolic gesture. Admittedly, I like the idea that no single person can dominate by taking all the air time, but there is much to say and opportunities like this one are rare.

Dems Leaders Present, But Electeds Have Somewhere Better to Be

One might have expected elected officials from particular districts would make attending a priority. Yet my Congressman, Stephen Lynch, was not present for the CD8 session. At the other session I attended, CD5, Katherine Clark was absent too. I don’t recall seeing state reps or senators either. Maybe they didn’t know about the sessions or thought their presence might interfere with an honest exchange?

But Mass Dems statewide chair and executive director gave short presentations with slides showing trends in voter data. The slides were a “rosy” picture, if you like votes cast for Republicans. Both visuals and data underscored the need to focus attention on building Democratic support in Massachusetts. I valued the dose of reality and felt grateful for a data-informed discussion.

Heartfelt Pleas; Two Minutes of Testimony

At both sessions, I heard from town committee members, activists, and heartsick residents speaking to national and statewide issues that affect us locally. Speakers made emotional pitches, nearly pleading for the party to take stronger positions. For example, several expressed opposition to US funding for military actions in Gaza. Katherine Clark’s constituents felt she had been elusive. The frustration with electeds who barely seemed to register their constituents’ outrage was palpable.

On the topic of transparency, many participants called for reform. They articulated the abysmal way state Democrats have shrouded committee votes, steered around the will of the people, and avoided accountability. After a statewide ballot initiative on transparency that passed with strong support, key Democrats seem to be playing a waiting game. Nowhere in the report on the listening tour do the Mass Dems take any ownership or responsibility for making change.

In Your Dreams–Needs of Young People/Young Families

Several speakers advocated for affordable housing. The Commonwealth’s 20-somethings have little chance of affording their own homes and stable rentals are, at best, a distant memory. The report included no mention of housing and no substantive recommendations. The remotely related note states that participants wanted messaging with attention to economic themes. Even a few quotes would have made this report a more accurate representation of the tone and substance of participants’ comments.

Overall, It’s a Win

Critiques aside, I still count the listening tour as a win. I see three reasons to give the MassDems a passing grade.

First, the state party set a precedent for hearing from constituents across the state. Though the “tour” was virtual, Democrats took feedback from 1,500+ people in nine virtual listening sessions, and also fielded hundreds of written submissions.

Second, despite high levels of disappointment and frustration, discourse was civil. Third, Grassroots Connector readers will appreciate the Dems’ commitment to year-round organizing, which found its way into the final report along with making sure Democrats have tools, and better data.

With the Mass Dems “tour” as an example, I imagine Democrats in other states could pull off their own tours. Other states, including Kentucky and Montana, conducted listening tours in the wake of the 2024 election. Now that spring makes travel easier, let’s hope more states follow suit and do it better.

If you have experience with listening tours, please add to the comments or send a write-up.