Liberal group releases plan to woo MAHA voters for Democrats

A liberal think tank is encouraging Democrats to incorporate reforms meant to crack down on ultraprocessed foods and harmful chemicals into their platforms ahead of the 2028 presidential election to court swing voters who support the Make America Healthy Again movement.A new policy document from the Center for American Progress, a Democrat-aligned group, calls on “progressives to reclaim leadership” on food, nutrition, and agriculture reform issues that have been central to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s MAHA agenda for the Trump administration.The document, titled “An Alternative to MAHA,” encourages Democrats to support labels on ultra-processed foods, require fast-track safety reviews for chemical food additives, and back the creation of a National Institute of Nutrition within the National Institutes of Health. CAP’s President Neera Tanden told Politico in an interview that dissatisfaction among the MAHA base over unfulfilled promises from President Donald Trump has created an opportunity for Democrats to gain swing voters.“Because of the broken promises of the Trump administration, Democrats have a more open field to attract the MAHA voters who were important to President Trump’s election in 2024,” said Tanden, who is a former adviser to the Clinton, Obama, and Biden administrations.The policy document recommends that Congress create a new Preventive Health Science Commission to issue guidelines and recommendations on diet, vaccines, and other preventive medicine services. Board members under the CAP’s plan would be appointed by the president and Senate-confirmed, in part to avoid a scenario similar to Kennedy’s unilateral firing of vaccine advisory panel members last year.The CAP proposal also calls for clear warning labels on ultraprocessed foods that have high levels of sugar, saturated fats, and salt, a measure that has bipartisan support in Congress.The new policy proposal comes less than 24 hours after Calley Means, a food reform activist and MAHA architect, resigned his post from the Trump administration following delays in formalizing a federal definition of ultra-processed foods.Means’s departure resulted in backlash and disappointment among MAHA activists on social media, who argue corporate influence on other White House advisers has stalled commitments to MAHA reforms.The CAP document taps into that frustration and argues Democrats are in a better position to take on large pharmaceutical and agriculture business interests than Republicans.“Fewer than half of Americans trust agriculture, food, and beverage companies and fewer than half trust public health agencies to act independently,” the CAP document reads. “Simply put, corporate industry wields too much power over the regulatory system–and political leaders for decades have ignored these festering problems.”Gaining a foothold with MAHA voters could boost the 2028 prospects for Democrat candidates who embrace food reform and show interest in taking on corporate interests.MAHA ACTIVISTS JADED BY TOP ALLY’S DEPARTURE FROM WHITE HOUSEKelly Ryerson, a prominent anti-pesticide activist in the MAHA movement, told the Washington Examiner Means’s resignation signals the Trump administration “is falling short on their commitments” to the MAHA movement, but “it doesn’t necessarily mean that MAHA voters will run and vote Democrat.”“It’s more a renewed, deep distrust in the entire political system that continues to leave our kids sick and medicated,” Ryerson said.