small-d democrat

noun

A democrat, that is, a person who holds democratic views; not necessarily someone who is a member of a country's "Democratic Party".

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Meanings

nounsmall-d democrat (plural small-d democrats)

plural small-d democrats · alternative small "d" democrat · alternative small d democrat

  1. USA democrat, that is, a person who holds democratic views; not necessarily someone who is a member of a country's "Democratic Party".

    To read his memoir of those years, Locked in the Cabinet, is to feel the sting experienced by this talented, innovative, and principled small “d” democrat as he was repeatedly shoved aside on economic issues by Rubin, Bentsen, Panetta, and, of course, the grand vizier himself, Alan Greenspan.

    2022, Gary Gerstle, chapter 5, in The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order […] , New York: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, Part II. The Neoliberal Order, 1970–2020
Cite this entry
APA

small-d democrat. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/small-d%20democrat

MLA

“small-d democrat.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/small-d%20democrat. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “small-d democrat,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/small-d%20democrat.

Source: small-d democrat on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.