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The Opposition

The Secret Battle to Shape the DNC’s Autopsy Report

Veterans of the Biden-Harris operation are spooked about what might come out—and making moves to prevent it.

Lauren Egan's avatar
Lauren Egan
Sep 25, 2025
∙ Paid
(Shutterstock)

WHEN KEN MARTIN WAS ELECTED chair of the Democratic National Committee earlier this year, he said that one of his top priorities would be to conduct a review of the 2024 presidential election.

“What we need to do right now is really start to get a handle around what happened last election cycle,” Martin told reporters minutes after he was elected, vowing to make the findings of the forthcoming review public. “There has to be some lessons that we glean.”

Nearly eight months later, the report has yet to be finalized. But it is out there, looming in the ether, and the thought of it is giving heartburn to some top Democratic strategists who are worried that their reputations could be damaged by its contents.

According to interviews with eight Democratic officials who have been briefed on the report’s progress, top consultants and staffers on the Biden-turned-Harris campaign in particular have grown anxious about how much blame they will catch for

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