Every few months, another hit piece on Gen Z and Millennials in the workforce makes the rounds online, often perpetuating the same stereotypes: they’re lazy, they’re unprofessional, they’re difficult to work with, and they don’t ever want to come into the office.
But Run for Something co-founder Amanda Litman begs to differ.
At just 27 years old, she created the political organization that recruits Millennials and Gen Z to run for local office. Now, nearly a decade later, she shares what Millennials and Gen Z bring to the table in her latest book, When We’re in Charge: The Next Generation’s Guide to Leadership. At a time when American politics is dominated by the gerontocracy, Gen Z and Millennials could be the key to saving the Democratic Party.
Litman tells Mehdi, “When we bring fresh energy and fresh eyes to the table, we can change what happens next… The folks that got us into this mess, that got us to this point, do not have the skills or the stomach in many circumstances – especially in politics – to get us to the next one.”
As the DNC tries to oust vice-chair David Hogg after he announced his PAC would commit $20 million to fund younger candidates to replace incumbents, Litman has “complicated feelings” about the matter.
“I actually think it’s really important that as the DNC goes into its most important role, which is setting up the presidential primary process for 2028, that it be a neutral arbiter… I think David could have done this work outside of the party leadership structure.”
Check out the full interview above to hear Litman dive into why the US’s leadership is so old compared to other Western democracies and how why Trump didn’t face the concerns about his age as Biden did in the 2024 presidential race.
You can click here to buy a copy of Litman’s book, When We’re in Charge, and if you’ve already read it, feel free to share your review of it in the comments below! And be sure to check out the Zeteo book club for more book recommendations.
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