New Democrat Coalition

Overview

The New Democrat Coalition is a caucus within the House of Representatives founded in 1997 by Representatives Cal Dooley, Jim Moran, and Tim Roemer.

The Coalition supported "Third Way" policies during the presidency of Bill Clinton. The Coalition consists of liberal, moderate, and centrist Democrats. After the sharp decline of the Blue Dog Coalition in the 2010s, the New Democrat Coalition gained some of the Blue Dog Coalition's former clout by also having members from swing seats.

The group is known as fiscally moderate and pro-business. For example, the New Democrat Coalition supports free trade and the high-tech sector. The New Democrat Coalition also supports immigration reform.

Ideologically, it is positioned between the House Progressive Caucus and the Blue Dog Coalition. The Coalition has been described as both socially liberal and fiscally moderate-to-conservative.

Policy positions

The NDC advocates "working to bridge the partisan divide with a solutions-oriented approach to politics", combating climate change, transitioning to sustainable energy, increased access towards healthcare, and strengthening U.S. national security.

Economy

According to their Economic Opportunity Agenda, they value the diversification and strengthening of global supply chains, the enaction of legislation to address current constraints to global trade, the reduction of costs for U.S. consumers, and to buttress the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. They believe in a transparent exclusion process from Section 301 tariffs, and pursuing free trade agreements with the United Kingdom, Kenya, and Taiwan. The NDC lays out their plan to the reduction of energy prices and the transition to sustainable energy by instituting the investments made in the Inflation Reduction Act and easing market barriers towards cleaner energy.

Healthcare

On April 3, 2019, Representative Ami Bera introduced HR 2061, proposing state market mechanisms to increase enrollment, particularly focusing on auto-enrollment for those qualifying for $0 premium health plans.

Abortion rights

The New Democrat Coalition supports the right to travel for abortion, the protection of doctors who conduct abortions, and the enshrining of protections for reproductive care for servicewomen and military families. They also support the codification of abortion rights as protected by Roe v. Wade.

National security

According to their National Security Principles they value the modernization and sustainment of the U.S. Military, reinforcement of American internationalism, strengthening of regional commitments, reinforcing U.S. cybersecurity, and addressing the deficit.

Cybersecurity

When it comes to cybersecurity, the New Democrat Coalition's cybersecurity task force confronts digital security with fostering public-private information sharing, developing stronger defenses against cyberwarfare and cyberterrorism, establishment of a strong pipeline of workers to address said cyberwarfare and cyberterrorism, investment into stronger defenses in the public and private sectors, and securing the Internet of Things.

Climate change

According to the NDC's Principles for U.S. Climate Policy, they propose American global coordination towards climate solutions, transition to a clean energy economy, enacting climate-forward policies towards disaster relief and the transition of local communities to a sustainable energy grid, and recommitting to the Paris Agreement.

Foreign policy

Israel

Main article: United States support for Israel in the Gaza war

On October 12, 2023, five days after the October 7 attacks, the NDC endorsed a bipartisan resolution on standing with Israel and unequivocally condemning Hamas. Later, on October 20, they endorsed Biden's request for supplemental funding for both Israel and Ukraine.

Russian invasion of Ukraine

On April 20, 2024, the NDC affirmed their commitment to Ukraine by endorsing the Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2024. They would later applaud the success of the bill on April 23.

Electoral results

House of Representatives

Caucus chairs

Current caucus rules only allow for a single chair who serves a single, 2-year term. However, when the caucus began it permitted multiple chairs and 4-year terms.

Leadership

As of the 118th United States Congress, the Coalition's leaders are as follows:

• Chair: Brad Schneider (IL-10)
• Vice Chair for Outreach: Salud Carbajal (CA-24)
• Vice Chair for Member Services: Josh Harder (CA-09)
• Vice Chair for Communications: Marc Veasey (TX-33)
• Vice Chair for Policy: Nikki Budzinski (IL-13)
• Vice Chair At Large: Haley Stevens (MI-11)
• Whip: Marilyn Strickland (WA-10)
• Leadership Member: Jennifer McClellan (VA-04)
• Leadership Member: Andrea Salinas (OR-06)
• Freshman Leadership Representative: Kristen McDonald Rivet (MI-08)

Membership

As of August 11, 2025, the New Democrat Coalition had 116 members. Those members include 115 U.S. Representatives and one non-voting delegate of the House of Representatives. Of these, 85 were reelected in the 2024 United States House of Representatives elections, while 25 non-incumbents endorsed by the caucus PAC were elected to congress. Kevin Mullin, Brad Sherman, Jahana Hayes, Dan Goldman, Mike Levin, and James Walkinshaw joined the caucus at a later point.

Alabama

• Shomari Figures (AL-02)
• Terri Sewell (AL-7)

Arizona

• Greg Stanton (AZ-4)

California

• Ami Bera (CA-6)
• Josh Harder (CA-9)
• Adam Gray (CA-13)
• Kevin Mullin (CA-15)
• Sam Liccardo (CA-16)
• Jimmy Panetta (CA-19)
• Jim Costa (CA-21)
• Salud Carbajal (CA-24) – Vice Chair for Outreach
• Raul Ruiz (CA-25)
• Julia Brownley (CA-26)
• George Whitesides (CA-27)
• Gil Cisneros (CA-31)
• Brad Sherman (CA-32)
• Pete Aguilar (CA-33), Whip
• Norma Torres (CA-35)
• Derek Tran (CA-45)
• Lou Correa (CA-46)
• Mike Levin (CA-49)
• Scott H. Peters (CA-50)
• Sara Jacobs (CA-51)
• Juan Vargas (CA-52)

Colorado

• Jason Crow (CO-6)
• Brittany Pettersen (CO-7)

Connecticut

• Joe Courtney (CT-02)
• Jim Himes (CT-4)
• Jahana Hayes (CT-5)

Delaware

• Sarah McBride (DE-AL)

Florida

• Darren Soto (FL-9)
• Jared Moskowitz (FL-23)
• Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25)

Georgia

• Nikema Williams (GA-5)
• Lucy McBath (GA-6)
• David Scott (GA-13)

Hawaii

• Ed Case (HI-1)

Illinois

• Mike Quigley (IL-5)
• Sean Casten (IL-6)
• Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-8) retiring to run for U.S. Senate.
• Brad Schneider (IL-10) – Vice Chair for Communications
• Bill Foster (IL-11)
• Nikki Budzinski (IL-13)
• Eric Sorensen (IL-17)

Indiana

• Frank J. Mrvan (IN-1)
• André Carson (IN-7)

Kansas

• Sharice Davids (KS-3) – Vice Chair for Member Services

Kentucky

• Morgan McGarvey (KY-3)

Louisiana

• Troy Carter (LA-2)

Maryland

• Johnny Olszewski (MD-02)
• Sarah Elfreth (MD-03)
• Glenn Ivey (MD-4)
• April McClain Delaney (MD-06)

Massachusetts

• Lori Trahan (MA-3) – At-large Leadership Member
• Seth Moulton (MA-6)
• Bill Keating (MA-9)

Michigan

• Hillary Scholten (MI-3)
• Kristen McDonald Rivet (MI-08)
• Haley Stevens (MI-11)
• Shri Thanedar (MI-13)

Minnesota

• Angie Craig (MN-2) retiring to run for U.S. Senate.
• Kelly Morrison (MN-03)

Missouri

• Wesley Bell (MO-01)

Nevada

• Susie Lee (NV-3) – Whip
• Steven Horsford (NV-4)

New Hampshire

• Chris Pappas (NH-1) retiring to run for U.S. Senate.
• Maggie Goodlander (NH-02)

New Jersey

• Donald Norcross (NJ-1)
• Herb Conaway (NJ-03)
• Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5)
• Nellie Pou (NJ-09)
• Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11), resigned to become Governor of New Jersey

New Mexico

• Gabe Vasquez (NM-2)

New York

• Tom Suozzi (NY-3)
• Laura Gillen (NY-04)
• Gregory Meeks (NY-5)
• Dan Goldman (NY-10)
• Pat Ryan (NY-18)
• George Latimer (NY-16)
• Josh Riley (NY-19)
• John Mannion (NY-22)
• Joe Morelle (NY-25)
• Tim Kennedy (NY-26)

North Carolina

• Don Davis (NC-1)
• Deborah K. Ross (NC-2)
• Valerie Foushee (NC-4)

Ohio

• Greg Landsman (OH-1)
• Shontel Brown (OH-11)
• Emilia Sykes (OH-13)

Oregon

• Val Hoyle (OR-4)
• Janelle Bynum (OR-05)
• Andrea Salinas (OR-6)

Pennsylvania

• Brendan Boyle (PA-2)
• Madeleine Dean (PA-4)
• Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-5)
• Chrissy Houlahan (PA-6)

Texas

• Lizzie Fletcher (TX-7)
• Veronica Escobar (TX-16)
• Joaquin Castro (TX-20)
• Henry Cuellar (TX-28)
• Julie Johnson (TX-32)
• Marc Veasey (TX-33) – At-large Leadership Member
• Vicente Gonzalez (TX-34)

Virginia

• Jennifer McClellan (VA-4)
• Eugene Vindman (VA-07)
• Don Beyer (VA-8)
• Suhas Subramanyam (VA-10)
• James Walkinshaw (VA-11)

Washington

• Suzan DelBene (WA-1) – Chair Emeritus
• Rick Larsen (WA-2)
• Emily Randall (WA-06)
• Kim Schrier (WA-8)
• Adam Smith (WA-9)
• Marilyn Strickland (WA-10)

Non-voting

• Stacey Plaskett (VI-AL)
• Pablo Hernández Rivera (PR-AL)

Campaign arm

The NewDem Action Fund, formerly known as the NewDemPAC, is the campaign arm of the caucus.

Notes

References

References

1. Stanage, Niall. (March 2, 2015). "Centrist Dems ready strike against Warren wing". [[The Hill (newspaper).
2. "United House Democrats Return to Squabbling Ways". [[National Journal]].
3. (March 24, 2014). "House Democrats press for immigration vote". [[Politico]].
4. (December 4, 2018). "Will the Congressional Progressive Caucus become the Freedom Caucus of the left?".
5. (December 4, 2018). "Will the Congressional Progressive Caucus become the Freedom Caucus of the left?".
6. "New Democrat Coalition Celebrates S wearing-In of New Dem Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan".
7. "Leadership {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
8. Ruyle, Megan. (February 26, 2013). "A new chairman at helm, New Dems seek more influence in this Congress".
9. Heilbrunn, Jacob. (November 17, 1997). "The New New Democrats".
10. (December 20, 2021). "As Manchin balks at Dems' agenda, moderates have the most to lose".
11. (January 3, 2022). "Here's what to watch in Congress and national politics in 2022 | The Spokesman-Review".
12. (November 17, 2012). "New Dems hope to be a force in 113th Congress".
13. (December 23, 2021). "Democrats: Not giving up on spending bill".
14. (November 13, 2018). "House Democratic Factions All See Gains After Midterms".
15. Skelley, Geoffrey. (December 20, 2018). "The House Will Have Just As Many Moderate Democrats As Progressives Next Year".
16. (November 19, 2021). "The House passes a $2 trillion spending bill, but braces for changes in the Senate".
17. (November 19, 2021). "Trade".
18. (November 19, 2019). "Innovation".
19. Brooks, David. (September 17, 2020). "Opinion | No, the Democrats Haven't Gone Over the Edge". The New York Times.
20. (2020). "The Rhetoric of the American Political Party Conventions, 1948–2016". Rowman & Littlefield.
21. Blake, Aaron. (April 29, 2012). "Why the Blue Dogs' decline was inevitable". [[The Washington Post]].
22. "About Us {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
23. "Economic Opportunity Agenda {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
24. US EPA, OAR. (2022-11-21). "Summary of Inflation Reduction Act provisions related to renewable energy".
25. "H.R. 2061 {{!}} Congressional Chronicle {{!}} C-SPAN.org".
26. "New Democrat Coalition Chair Statement on 51st Anniversary of Roe v. Wade Decision {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
27. "New Democrat Coalition Chair Statement on Supreme Court Decision to Overturn Roe v. Wade {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
28. "National Security {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
29. "Climate Change and Clean Energy {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
30. "New Democrat Coalition Leadership Endorses Bipartisan Resolution Standing with Israel, Unequivocally Condemning Hamas {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
31. "New Dems Stand Firm, Help Pass Critical National Security Package to Support Our Allies and Deliver Humanitarian Aid {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
32. "New Dem Chair Applauds Senate for Sending National Security Funding to President Biden's Desk {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
33. "25th Anniversary".
34. "Leadership {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
35. "Leadership {{!}} New Democrat Coalition".
36. Pathé, Simone. (2018-10-17). "NewDemPAC Helps Candidates Navigate Trump, Raise Money".
37. Schneider, Brad. (2021-08-25). "Mainstream Democrats keep winning — let's not stop now".