The midterms showed Democrats don’t need to pander on crime

Here’s another positive outcome of the surprising midterm elections: They should put an end to the crime scare.

I don’t mean the public concern about crime, which is still at unacceptable levels, but the fearmongering by Democratic pollsters, operatives and politicians about the political issue of crime and its effects on the Democratic Party.

In the run-up to the elections, Republicans went all in charging Democrats with being weak on crime and tying Democratic candidates to the “defund the police” slogan. The GOP spent more ad money railing about rising crime than about the economy or inflation. Pre-election Washington Post polls showed Republicans with a double-digit advantage on the issue, far larger than their edge on the economy or immigration.

In response, Democratic Party operatives began rending their garments. Paul Begala agonized that “I have never seen a more destructive slogan than ‘defund the police.’ ” Pollster Stanley B. Greenberg warned that “the 2022 midterms will be remembered as a toxic campaign, but an effective one in labeling Democrats as ‘pro-crime.’ ” New York Times columnist Thomas B. Edsall even recycled Elaine Ciulla Kamarck and William Galston’s updated version of their infamous 1989 “Politics of Evasion” essay, which argued that the Democratic brand was poison, and that the party “is in the grip of myths that block progress toward victory.”

Then came the election, and the results were clear. CNN exit polls showed that voters ranked inflation as the top factor in their vote, followed closely by abortion. Only 11 percent mentioned crime. Democrats — including many calling for criminal justice reform.

The candidate seemingly most vulnerable to the crime scare this year was John Fetterman, running for the open U.S. Senate seat in Pennsylvania. As lieutenant governor, Fetterman had devoted much of his energy to working on getting nonviolent offenders released from prison. Republicans poured money into attacking him on the issue — spending nearly $12 million on crime ads, according to AdImpact, compared to $2.5 million on the economy and inflation. Fetterman not only won, he picked up a Senate seat for the Democrats.

More From The Washington Post (subscription required):