Why working-class people account for around 1% of lawmakers in the US – and only 2% in the average democracy around the world

Troy Jackson, the Democratic nominee in Maine's U.S. Senate race, greets a supporter on July 25, 2026, in Bangor. AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty Both major U.S. political parties regularly tout their commitment to working-class Americans and claim to be the party of the working class. However, neither the Democrats nor the Republicans nominate many candidates who spent substantial time in working-class jobs. This near-absence of people from working-class jobs in the halls of power matters. According…