But in a press call on Thursday, Martin unequivocally denounced Hogg’s actions as the organization weighs a neutrality pledge that could force him to refrain from intervening in primaries or risk losing his position.

“No DNC officer should ever attempt to influence the outcome of a primary election, whether on behalf of an incumbent or a challenger,” said Martin. “Voters should decide who our primary nominees are, not DNC leadership. Our role is to serve as stewards of a fair, open, and trusted process, not to tilt the scales.”

Martin said he asked all DNC officers to abide by the party’s neutrality pledge during last month’s retreat, but Hogg reportedly did not sign the pledge.

At a DNC member call on Thursday, Martin is expected to unveil an agenda that formalizes the requirement that officers stay neutral during all primaries, not just during presidential races, NOTUS reported.

“I have great respect for David Hogg. I think he’s an amazing young leader who’s done so much already to help move our movement forward,” Martin added. “I understand what he’s trying to do, as I said to him, if you want to challenge incumbents, you’re more than free to do that, but just not as an officer of the DNC, because our job is to be neutral arbiters.”

Hogg, however, said on Thursday that he would not leave his PAC or his DNC role if the expanded neutrality pledge were adopted.

“If they decide to remove me, I don’t take it personally. This is a strategic disagreement here,” Hogg told Semafor.

Jane Kleeb, president of the Association of State Democratic Committees, stressed that the actions Martin is taking this week are not meant to retaliate against Hogg but are about reforming the Democratic Party after a bruising 2024 election cycle.

“I, too, have a deep relationship with David. I was just talking with him this morning,” Kleeb said on the press call. “We hope that he realizes that he got elected to be an officer of the DNC, which means that we remain neutral. The vast majority of state parties already have this as a rule.”

On Thursday, the DNC announced a $1 million monthly investment in all 50 state parties in an effort to help rebuild before the 2026 and 2028 elections.

The DNC will allot $17,500 to state officials in blue states and increase the allotment to $22,500 for state parties in red states, a move that marks the largest ever investment in state infrastructure.

“With our new monthly investment of more than $1 million into state and territory parties, we are sending a strong message that our party is building from the ground up and we’re building everywhere,” Martin said during the announcement of his “Organize Everywhere, Win Anywhere” plan.

The DNC chairman repeatedly stressed that the new plan is meant to move the Democratic Party’s focus from Washington back to individual states in a call-back to former DNC chairman Howard Dean’s 50-state strategy.

“These resources will allow Democratic state parties to invest in critical infrastructure and staffing, strengthen their data and tech operations, build on-the-ground organizing programs, and better prepare for upcoming election cycles, not just in the months ahead, but in the years to come,” Martin said.

Kleeb added that the investment is “a significant shift where state parties are going from 8% of the DNC budget to over 20% of the DNC budget.”

After the 2024 elections, which saw Democrats shut out of power both in the White House and Congress, party officials have struggled to counter Trump’s dominance of Washington effectively.

But Martin’s new initiative is considered a step toward helping Democrats rebuild before the 2025 off-year elections and the midterm elections the following year.

“I do think we’re going to take the Senate and the House back in 2026, but that is an inside-the-beltway effort,” Dean told reporters on Thursday during the press call. “If the Democrats ever want to recover from what has happened to us over the past few years, we are going to have to do exactly what Ken and Jane are talking about, and we have got — we’ve got to knock on every door and get people to run for the state legislature.”

“We have to get people to run for school boards, and we have to get people to run for city councils. That is going to rebrand the Democratic Party,” he added.

ILLINOIS DEMOCRATS WAIT IN THE WINGS FOR DURBIN 2026 ANNOUNCEMENT

The increase in funding to state parties in red states is also an implicit acknowledgment from Democrats that red states are likely the future to winning the future electoral map.

“I have to, as a Minnesotan, use a hockey analogy, right? Wayne Gretzky once said, ‘You have to skate to where the puck will be, not where the puck is,’” said Martin. “And that’s what we’re doing here, because investing in red states is critically important, both now but also in the future.”