I think that the Republicans have figured out that the smaller the election, the more powerful the marginalized voter. Then once that marginalized voter is motivated and engaged in the process, you just have to keep them engaged all through progressively larger prizes to the top.
Democrats have been gunning for the Presidency with the belief that a successful Presidential candidate will carry Democrats in the lower strata to wins. And they've just never learned the lesson that you should always run a candidate on every ballot. Never let the other party run unopposed.
Democrats like Rep. Ocasio-Cortez figured out that approach erodes support among grassroots constituencies - essentially makes historically loyal liberal voters feel marginalized and ignored (which they are unfortunately) - and motivating them with demands for change & attention within the party pays dividends politically for progressive candidates. That hasn't translated into enough success at the upper strata of government, but I think that's coming.
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