The Democratic National Committee (DNC) and Paul Rivera, author of the party’s 2024 presidential campaign autopsy, have engaged in a public dispute over the omission of a key chapter from the report released earlier this year. The disagreement centers on a section titled “What Happened in 2024,” which Rivera says was excluded from the draft published by the DNC despite his having provided it to party leadership.

In May, the DNC released a draft autopsy of the party’s losses in the 2024 election, presenting it as the complete document. However, Rivera contends that the version made public did not include a pivotal chapter addressing sensitive issues, including President Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s decision to seek re-election, a decline in support among Hispanic, Black, Asian American, and Native American voters, and concerns about a party leadership class described as “generationally wealthy” and potentially out of touch with the challenges faced by everyday Americans.

Rivera said he personally handed a three-ring binder containing the chapter to DNC Chairman Ken Martin in January, but Martin has denied ever receiving the material. Martin called the claim “false” and stated that if the party had obtained such a document, it would have been included with the rest of the report. He also emphasized his commitment to holding political consultants accountable and said the party would have welcomed critical analysis of those who profit from Democratic political work.

The “What Happened” chapter questioned whether President Biden’s decision to run for a second term was a central factor in the party’s electoral setback and pointed to a broader disconnect between senior strategists and voters. Rivera wrote that the party’s senior operatives were financially secure, potentially blinding them to the realities facing many Americans, and suggested that party members seeking reform were frequently undermined by an inflexible system that enriched insiders.

The dispute remains unresolved, complicated by the fact that much of the coordination around the autopsy was conducted privately between Rivera and Martin, without extensive documentation. While Rivera provided a Word file of the missing chapter with metadata indicating it was last edited shortly before his January meeting with Martin, the DNC says a search found no record of the document. Additionally, emails related to the chapter could not be verified due to the party’s policy of deleting messages after 30 days. Other DNC officials involved in the autopsy process stated they had not seen the missing section.

The disagreement has unfolded with less than 100 days remaining until the November midterm elections, a critical period when Democrats aim to capitalize on President Trump’s low approval ratings to regain control of Congress. It also comes amid criticism of Martin’s leadership after the DNC reported more than $2 million in debt, compared to the Republican National Committee’s substantial financial reserves.

Rivera, whose reputation suffered following the partial release and subsequent disavowal of his original report, said he chose to speak publicly out of concern that the party’s resistance to candid self-examination risks repeating past errors. He is now publishing his own extensive 564-page review of the 2024 campaign, calling for disruption within the party to drive meaningful change and break the cycle of entrenched interests benefiting from the status quo.