Democracy Has a Gap Problem

Before its recent revival, nobody hated Gap. They just stopped caring about it. The clothes gathered dust on the shelves because the designs were tired, out of touch with modern fashion sensibilities and ill-fitting. In-store traffic had fallen year after year, and few young people wanted to be seen wearing Gap’s logo on its ever-present hoodies. 

Democracy itself is facing a similar challenge right now. What was once a staple in the American wardrobe is feeling a bit stale. But Americans aren’t rejecting democracy. According to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, “three-quarters of Americans (73%) say democracy is preferable to any other kind of government.” But for too many people, democracy seems largely irrelevant because they haven’t seen tangible evidence of how it makes their lives better. Research from the Kettering Foundation found that about half of American adults believe democracy is functioning “very” or “moderately” poorly, while only about one-quarter think it’s doing well.

It’s not outright rejection of democracy so much as disengagement. It feels like an abstract concept instead of a living, breathing way we create the world we want to live in. We read about it in history books and are left wondering what it means for us today. That makes democracy seem stale and out of fashion like Gap before its recent creative revival and partnerships with musicians Katseye, Young Miko and Tyla. 

People haven’t abandoned the idea; we’ve lost faith in the execution. Every two years, we’re told to vote, that voting is our civic responsibility, and that it is our voice in matters of politics and policy. But what we get in return feels like something found underneath the clearance shelf. 

President Joe Biden launched his 2024 reelection campaign with a “save democracy” video entitled “Freedom.” It opened with the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and an abortion rights protest and framed the entire race as a battle against “MAGA extremists” threatening democracy. It did not mention a single kitchen-table economic concern.

The campaign’s framing assumed that the “democracy at stake” messaging would motivate the voters Biden needed to win, but it didn’t. It sparked fear, but it did not spark connection. 

The staples of democracy, its heritage, of serving jury duty, voting in local elections, participating in community meetings are real and can resonate like a Gap hoodie, but framing them through the lens of the Founding Fathers turns off young and skeptical audiences. 

The playbook that Gap used to become culturally relevant again — which included reframing its storied heritage, collaborating with new messengers, meeting audiences where they are — offers a concrete template for democracy advocates who have relied too heavily on fear-based, institutional messaging.

At the direction of its new CEO Richard Dickinson, the company shifted to cultural relevance as a key marker of success for Gap because, “if you’re relevant enough it eventually drives revenue.” 

Gap sharpened its strategic position to “heritage made relevant” and reframed what made Gap special in a modern context that would excite young people. A combination of well-designed basics, movement, and music. With campaigns like Feels Like Gap starring Parker Posey and Get Loose with Troye Sivan, the company evoked the brand’s 1990s identity that had so many of us in a choke hold without being limited by it. 

Democracy advocacy too often measures the equivalent of sales, such as voter registration and turnout while ignoring cultural relevance. Groups such as HeadCount and Michelle Obama’s When We All Vote are racking up impressive voter registration numbers, but these efforts are tied to election cycles rather than sustained cultural campaigns.

Gap’s comeback wasn’t built through a single campaign. It was a prolonged process, built through new leadership, updated creative direction, cultural collaborations and consistent integration of heritage with modern relevance. 

Democracy advocates must embrace the same timeline. The goal shouldn’t be to have a viral moment before Election Day. It should be to make democracy feel like something people live in daily like their favorite style of jeans, not something they’re asked to defend every four years.

To save democracy, we must stop marketing it as an institution to save and start marketing it as the operating system that governs whether our everyday life gets better or worse.