Democratic ideals capture what’s best about America.
For more than 200 years, the Democratic Party has represented the interests of working families, fighting for equal opportunities and justice for men, women and children of all colors, beliefs and social backgrounds.
Here are our principles in more detail.
Dems 101 Creed
In July 2023, the Hardin Democratic Party voted to support the Dems 101 Creed.
Ohio Democratic Party Platform (1998)
We believe that the best government is one that is efficient, yet understanding – a government that is based not on systems or bureaucracies, but on people, ideas and values.
We believe there is no substitute for fair and equal representation and strong public participation in a government chosen by election.
We believe in a government that stands on the side of Ohio’s families – that listens, understands and addresses their concerns.
We believe that all Ohioans reap benefits when we, as a state, meet our challenges together. We believe in the equality of all Ohio citizens and condemn any discrimination.
We believe in a society that strengthens Ohio’s families and protects our children.
We believe in the rights of all Ohioans to achieve economic security and find affordable housing, to seek good jobs at a livable wage, and protection for our workers in a growing, robust economy.
We believe in a society that puts the health, safety and prosperity of its citizens first, one that promotes excellence in education, choices in quality health care and a healthy environment for all Ohio citizens.
We believe in a society that values community and protects all Ohio citizens from violence and crime.
We believe in a society that respects our elders, who deserve the right to retire with the resources they need and have earned to support themselves in their golden years.
And we believe in pursuing these ideals with honesty and integrity, with respect for the freedoms that we in Ohio are proud to call our own.
Democratic National Committee Platform (2020)
(excerpts)
Democrats will forge a new social and economic contract with the American people—a contract that creates millions of new jobs and promotes shared prosperity, closes racial gaps in income and wealth, guarantees the right to join or form a union, raises wages and ensures equal pay for women and paid family leave for all, and safeguards a secure and dignified retirement.
We must guarantee health care not as a privilege for some, but as a right for every single American…We will not rest until every American can access quality health care and affordable prescription drugs.
We must steel and strengthen our democracy, not distort and debase it. Democrats believe there is nothing to fear from the voices and votes of the American people. We will restore the full
power of the Voting Rights Act and stamp out voter suppression in all its forms.… We will curb the corrupting influence of money in politics and protect the integrity of our elections from all enemies, foreign and domestic. We will never accept political gridlock as our fate.
We will never tire in our fight to deliver results and create opportunity for all Americans. And we will end the war on government that has politicized our institutions, denigrated public service, and left the American people on their own instead of working to make them whole.
We must heal our nation’s deepest wounds, not fan the flames of hate. Democrats will root out structural and systemic racism in our economy and our society, and reform our criminal justice system from top to bottom, because we believe Black lives matter.
We will ensure that our nation continues to prize diversity and compassion, and welcomes those who yearn to participate in our great democratic experiment by creating a humane, 21st century immigration system that benefits all Americans.
…We commit ourselves to the vision articulated by Frederick Douglass of “a Government founded upon justice, and recognizing the equal rights of all.”
We must lead the world in taking on the climate crisis, not deny the science and accelerate the damage… . Democrats will rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement and go further, building a thriving, equitable, and globally competitive clean energy economy that puts workers and communities first, and leaves no one behind.