Joe Cunningham was the first Democrat to be elected to South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District in over 40 years. He won the heavily gerrymandered district in 2018 and was ranked one of the most effective members of Congress.
Now, in his forthcoming book, Life of the Party: How Democrats Lost America’s Trust – and How They Can Win It Back (South Battery Press; May 20, 2026), Cunningham delivers an insider’s reckoning with how a once-dominant political movement lost its way—and how it can win again.
With candor and hard-earned experience, he spotlights the recent failings of the Democratic Party in the years leading up to the 2024 presidential election. He offers a view from the ground, told by a lifelong Southern Democrat who defied the odds and won.
Cunningham breaks down the deeper systemic problems holding Democrats back: flawed messaging, disconnected messengers, and a growing inability to communicate with regular voters. He takes on culture wars that have distracted the party from its core mission and argues that affordability, dignity, and everyday economic pressures are where elections are truly won.
In Life of the Party, Cunningham voices his great concern that the Democratic Party hasn’t learned the lessons of 2024, so will remain uncompetitive in all the red states. He explains how Democrats ignored kitchen table issues between 2020-2024 and has refused to acknowledge their own self-inflicted wounds that led to their defeat. Cunningham argues that many Americans believe that arrogance has replaced empathy in the Democratic Party and how Democrats must change their communication style and connect with everyday voters.
Cunningham writes, “Life was brimming in the Democratic Party when it could combine substance with soul. When it could listen, empathize with everyday struggles, breathe in those challengers, and then exhale real, meaningful, and bold solutions that would transform generations. It was when the party was connected to the community because it respected and listened to it. In recent years, I’ve seen the party drift further from the working class and, therefore, the solutions the party espouses fall flat. The party does not listen to voters and they’ve reciprocated.”
Blending sharp political analysis with vivid stories from the campaign trail and the halls of Congress, Cunningham brings policy to life in a way few political books ever do. Relentlessly engaging, Life of the Party is a must-read for anyone who cares about the future of the Democratic Party—and American politics itself.