海角大神

In some ways, the Democrats are on a roll.

First, they beat expectations by easily winning the Virginia governorship earlier this month and nearly taking over the state legislature鈥檚 lower house. Now they have a shot at claiming a much more improbable prize: a US Senate seat in a special election Dec. 12 in deep-red Alabama, following allegations of sexual misconduct by Republican candidate Roy Moore.

But Democrats are hardly resting easy. with some in the party now reevaluating former President Bill Clinton鈥檚 sexual escapades and Hillary Clinton鈥檚 controversial defense of her husband. Mrs. Clinton also caused a recent stir by , handing critics an argument that she鈥檚 behaving just as she said Mr. Trump would if he had lost.

Elements of the larger context haven鈥檛 helped the Democrats: Their aging leaders have become fodder for . The Democratic National Committee is strapped for cash. And it鈥檚 locked in an internal battle between the 鈥淏ernie Sanders wing鈥� and the 鈥淗illary Clinton wing,鈥� as it seeks to dig out of years of atrophy under President Obama 鈥� and .

Then there are Trump and the Republicans, who are happily using Clinton for their own purposes. They have turned her into a sort of 鈥渂ogeywoman鈥� 鈥� beginning with the campaign chants of 鈥渓ock her up鈥� and continuing to this day with calls for a special counsel to look into her various alleged misdeeds.

In short, Clinton鈥檚 shadow still hovers over the party, part of the larger phenomenon of a party with many leaders 鈥� and therefore no leader. And as the Democrats regroup, they will need to answer an important question: Can they find a way to incorporate Clinton鈥檚 perceived positives 鈥� including as a role model for women looking to go far in politics 鈥� while avoiding her negatives?

鈥淭here are certainly people still adjusting to the fact that Barack Obama is no longer president, and to the stark difference that Donald Trump gives us,鈥� says Jane Kleeb, chairwoman of the Nebraska Democratic Party. 鈥淚 think a lot of this struggle to find our footing again is compounding all of that, because there is not one unified voice.鈥�

The Democrats won鈥檛 have a true leader until they have a presidential nominee, and that鈥檚 two and a half years away. In the meantime, local party officials are getting used to the cacophony of voices that amount to a collective party leadership that is doing battle 鈥� and then at times cooperating 鈥� with Trump.

Ask Democrats who their leaders are, and the list is long: from Hillary Clinton, former President Barack Obama, and former Vice President Joe Biden; to Senator Sanders of Vermont (who isn鈥檛 even a Democrat, but an independent); to DNC chairman Tom Perez and vice chair Keith Ellison; to Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York and Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, the minority leaders on Capitol Hill.

鈥淥n the one hand, such a long list is great, because it shows the kind of diversity and breadth of our Democratic Party,鈥� says Ms. Kleeb, who was a progressive activist before becoming state party chair. 鈥淏ut on the other hand, it鈥檚 not great, because everybody knows that everybody鈥檚 fighting.鈥�

Kleeb is a Sanders appointee to the DNC鈥檚 Unity Reform Commission, an effort to fix party processes and find common ground among the party鈥檚 factions. Last week, Sen. Tim Kaine (D) of Virginia called for the elimination of superdelegates, elected officials who can vote for whomever they want as the Democratic presidential nominee, without regard to the results of primaries and caucuses.

Senator Kaine鈥檚 status as an 鈥渆stablishment鈥� Democrat 鈥� Clinton鈥檚 running mate in 2016, and a former DNC chair 鈥� gives his proposal added weight, as the Sanders wing seeks to make the party more 鈥渟mall-d鈥� democratic. The Unity Reform Commission will meet next month and issue recommendations.

Other state party activists are more locally focused. Luis Heredia, a Democratic national committeeman from Arizona, sees opportunity for Democratic pickups in his state鈥檚 open US Senate seat, the governor鈥檚 race, and the House seat held by Rep. Martha McSally (R). But he agrees that the party鈥檚 message needs some work.

鈥淒emographics cannot be destiny,鈥� Mr. Heredia says. 鈥淲e have a great opportunity with an emerging Latino electorate, with those energized young voters coming in. But in a midterm, you鈥檝e got to give people a reason to vote. Democrats have to run against Trump, but also be bold, and carve out our message.鈥�

In Wisconsin, where Gov. Scott Walker (R) is seeking a third term, state Democratic Party chair Martha Laning has eliminated the term 鈥渙ff year鈥� from her vocabulary.

鈥淲e鈥檙e calling this the 鈥榖uild year,鈥� 鈥� says Ms. Laning, who has boosted the staff from seven people to 19 since her election in 2015. 鈥淩ight now, we鈥檙e in listening mode. We鈥檙e going out and asking people, what is the most important issue to them, and hearing them out.鈥�

None of the state party officials interviewed expressed concern that Clinton could overshadow their efforts in next year鈥檚 elections 鈥� even in a red state like Nebraska.

鈥淎 lot of women and little girls saw Hillary Clinton as a transformative figure, just like many young people and African Americans saw Barack Obama as a transformative figure,鈥� says Kleeb. 鈥淪o no, we need her. I鈥檓 definitely not in the camp saying Nancy Pelosi and others who have been on the national stage need to move aside.鈥�

Democratic pollster Mark Mellman doesn鈥檛 see anything unusual in Clinton鈥檚 ongoing visibility. 鈥淛ohn Kerry went back to being a senator,鈥� says Mr. Mellman, referring to the Democrats鈥� 2004 nominee. 鈥淗e didn鈥檛 wither away to nothingness.鈥�

He also doesn鈥檛 see Clinton trying to exert control over the party. 鈥淭o my knowledge, she鈥檚 not involved herself in any of these internal debates about party processes 鈥� or even in policy debates,鈥� he says.

A Democratic strategist, speaking not for attribution, sees the reigniting of debate over Bill Clinton鈥檚 presidency 鈥� particularly his sexual misbehavior 鈥� as a temporary phenomenon linked to the rash of allegations made against men in various spheres of public life, including Trump.

鈥淟et鈥檚 be honest, whatever Bill Clinton did, he concluded what the public regards as a successful presidency,鈥� says the strategist. Hillary Clinton鈥檚 continued defense of her husband 鈥� that he was held to account for his actions 鈥� may be uncomfortable for her now, but the moment will pass, he says.

Republicans can be expected to keep demonizing Clinton, as they seek to rev up their voters and avoid a wipeout in the 2018 midterm elections. Most recently, Republicans have been calling for a special prosecutor to look into the so-called Uranium One deal 鈥� and alleged links between hefty donations to the Clinton Foundation and the sale of shares of US uranium reserves to a Russian company, a deal approved by the State Department under then-Secretary of State Clinton, along with eight other agencies.

Clinton , and that prosecuting her would make the country look like 鈥渟ome dictatorship.鈥� For the GOP, keeping Clinton in the headlines serves an important political purpose.

鈥淥ne way to keep a very fractured Republican Party together is just to bring up the name Hillary Clinton,鈥� says Seth Masket, a political scientist at the University of Denver.

For Democrats, bringing up Trump serves the same purpose. But even there, the party鈥檚 message isn鈥檛 uniform. TV ads by billionaire Tom Steyer calling for the impeachment of Trump are opposed by many Democrats.

鈥淚mpeachment at this stage, without a smoking gun, looks like a partisan ploy,鈥� says progressive activist Robert Borosage. 鈥淚t pleases the many liberals afflicted with doses of Trump derangement syndrome, but is seen as irresponsible at best by most everyone else.鈥�