DNC Chair Ken Martin expressed deep frustration about party Vice Chairman and Parkland shooting survivor David Hogg during a call with top Democratic leaders, saying, “No one knows who the hell I am.”
“I’ll be very honest with you: For the first time in my 100 days on this job, the other night I said to myself for the first time, ‘I don’t know if I wanna do this anymore,’” Martin candidly admitted in leaked audio from the May 15 Zoom meeting obtained by Politico.
Martin, who became the head of the Democratic National Committee in February, lamented how Hogg’s actions have overshadowed his leadership by creating controversy within the party over plans to financially back primary challenges against incumbent Democrats.
“No one knows who the hell I am, right?” Martin said during the call, in which he singled out Hogg, who was in the meeting.
“I’m trying to get my sea legs underneath of me and actually develop any amount of credibility so I can go out there and raise the money and do the job I need to put ourselves in a position to win,” the chairman said.
“I don’t think you intended this, but you essentially destroyed any chance I have to show the leadership that I need to,” he said, directly addressing Hogg. “So it’s really frustrating.”
Toward the end of the leaked audio, Martin’s voice grew softer, and he paused at least twice, appearing to be on the verge of choking up.
The DNC boss told Hogg, “I deeply respect you” and “was looking forward to working with you” while griping about the dilemma that the 25-year-old school mass-shooting survivor created.
Martin, referring to the state of the DNC, said, “It has plenty of warts, and we’re all trying to change those, for sure, but the longer we continue this fight, the harder it is for us to actually do what we all want to do, which is make a difference in this country again.”
About 10 people were reportedly on the call.
The Post reached out to the DNC and Hogg for comment. Hogg later posted text messages with the Politico reporter who broke the story as evidence that he didn’t leak the audio.
Martin was meanwhile adamant that “I’m not going anywhere” after the leaked audio surfaced.
“I took this job to fight Republicans, not Democrats,” he said in a statement obtained by Politico. “As I said when I was elected, our fight is not within the Democratic Party, our fight is and has to be solely focused on Donald Trump and the disastrous Republican agenda.
“That’s the work that I will continue to do every day.”
Hogg announced in April that his “Leaders We Deserve” group would shell out about $20 million to meddle in Democratic primaries located in safe districts to edge out what it considers complacent incumbents in favor of ones who are more feisty.
Last month, Hogg’s group made its first endorsement, backing Illinois state Sen. Robert Peters (D) for the seat held by US Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), in Illinois’ 2nd Congressional District. Kelly is running to replace retiring Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) in 2026.
Many Democrats are incensed that Hogg is attempting to retain his role as a vice chair at the DNC and intervene in primaries at the same time. Hogg is one of three vice chairs.
As with the Republican National Committee, the DNC provides candidates with resources and strategic assistance and is generally expected to be neutral in party primaries.
“Our job is to be neutral arbiters,” Martin previously said in another leaked April call. “We can’t be both the referee and also the player at the same time.”
Martin had pressured Hogg to either sign a neutrality pledge or step down from his highly coveted perch.
Last month, around the time of the leaked Martin Zoom call, the DNC Credentials Committee heard complaints that Hogg and fellow Vice Chair Malcolm Kenyatta were improperly elected to their positions in February.
The complaint was furnished by Oklahoma DNC member Kalyn Free, who pointed to committee rules calling for the party to have as close to gender parity as possible. She argued that the election of Hogg and Kenyatta flouted those rules.
The DNC subpanel recommended that the party hold new elections for the vice chair positions to rectify that issue.
All of that controversy has clouded the DNC’s efforts to go on the offensive against Republicans and President Trump amid deep soul-searching within the party over what went awry during the 2024 presidential election.
