The Democratic National Committee opened its annual summer meeting in Minneapolis on Monday, assembling more than 400 state and territorial party officials at a moment when Democratic approval ratings and fundraising have sunk to multi-decade lows ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Proceedings began with a land acknowledgment recognizing that Minneapolis sits on Indigenous land, a symbolic gesture praised by some delegates but derided by conservative critics as evidence the party remains disconnected from swing-state voters. Newly elected DNC Chair Ken Martin set a combative tone, declaring he was "sick and tired of this Democratic Party bringing a pencil to a knife fight." Martin urged delegates to stop being "the only party that plays by the rules," called President Donald Trump a "dictator-in-chief," and urged Democrats to "grow a spine" to block Republican policies he described as authoritarian. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Sen. Amy Klobuchar echoed calls for unity, while Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison told delegates that Democratic attorneys general have sued the Trump administration 44 times and stand ready to file more actions. Closed-door sessions later this week are expected to concentrate on voter-registration drives, candidate recruiting and sharpening economic and public-safety messages as the party seeks to reverse its polling and cash-on-hand deficits.