Marianne Williamson Is Back, Announces Bid for DNC Chair

Photo: Brian Snyder/Reuters

Marianne Williamson, the self-help author and repeat presidential candidate, announced her plans to pursue a new office in the coming year: chairperson of the Democratic National Committee. In a just over three-minute video shared Thursday, Williamson made the case for her candidacy, citing a need for the Democratic Party to completely transform in order for it to “rise like a phoenix from the ashes” in the wake of Donald Trump and the Republican Party’s decisive victories in November.

“Donald Trump is a 21st-century political phenomenon, and we need to become one too,” she said. “And I feel that if I’m in there, we’ll meet him toe-to-toe. Same kind of energy, same kind of adrenaline, same kind of political and emotional power.”

“I want to help people know what’s going on in politics,” she insisted. “I want to help people connect with the political issues that are going on in their lives in a very real and personal way. And I want to help people understand that by connecting to the Democratic Party, they can truly make a difference.”

This will be the second political campaign that Williamson has taken part in this year alone. In February 2023, Williamson announced her plans to challenge President Joe Biden in the 2024 Democratic presidential primary. She received 4 percent of the vote in the New Hampshire primary, the highest watermark for her campaign that cycle. Williamson would go on to suspend and restart her campaign numerous times before officially dropping out in July after missing a deadline to challenge Vice-President Kamala Harris, who replaced Biden on the ballot. Williamson also sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020, garnering attention for her progressive policies and her knack for going viral on social media.

Williamson joins a steadily growing field in the race to replace outgoing DNC chair Jamie Harrison that includes former Maryland governor Martin O’Malley, Wisconsin Democratic Party chair Ben Wikler, Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party chair Ken Martin, and New York State Senator James Skoufis. She’s the first woman to join the race.