Cocktails & Politics with David Hogg

SAVE THE DATE! August 15, 2025

Join American Public Square for a conversation with former co-vice chair of the DNC and Leaders We Deserve PAC founder David Hogg.

Where does the Democratic party go from here? After the 2024 election defeat, many voices have tried to fill the vacuum around conversations about the future of the Democratic party, but few have been as visible as David Hogg. From his time as co-vice chair at the DNC to founding his own PAC to support younger Democratic candidates, Hogg has been a critical part of the conversation in 2025. Hogg’s background as a survivor of the Parkland School shooting and outspoken commonsense gun reform activist have made him one of the most visible Gen Z leaders during the Trump era. This panel will unpack the role of younger candidates in the local and national conversation, what issues Democrats should pursue in the midterms, and which figures Hogg believes represent the future of the party.

David Hogg is a co-founder of March For Our Lives and the first Gen Z member and former DNC Vice Chair. After surviving the 2018 Parkland shooting, David and his classmates sparked one of the largest youth-led movements in the world, leading to the passage of hundreds of gun safety laws nationwide. David later found his footing in legislative campaigns by helping elect Maxwell Frost, the first Gen Z member of Congress. He and Frost’s campaign manager, Kevin Lata co-founded Leaders We Deserve, a PAC and SuperPAC dedicated to electing bold, young leaders to office, raising $11 million in its first cycle to lay a Democratic bench of Maxwell Frosts. From mobilizing tens of thousands of people and creating mass movements, to working closely with local and state leaders and helping elect Democrats up and down the ballot, time and again David has driven change and strengthened the Democratic Party from the ground up.

Jason Kander (Moderator) is an Afghanistan Veteran, a former Missouri Secretary of State, and a guy who kind of ran for president for a minute. Today, he is a senior advisor at Veterans Community Project, the co-host of the Majority 54 podcast, a bestselling author, the founder of American Rescue Project, and a men’s amateur baseball player.