New Democrats

New Democrats, also called Centrist Democrats, Clinton Democrats or Moderate Democrats, are a relatively "centrist" ideological faction within the Democratic Party that emerged after the victory of Republican George H. W. Bush in the 1988 presidential election. Describing themselves as "centrist", they are an economically right-wing and "Third Way" faction which dominated the party for around 20 years, starting in the late 1980s after the US populace turned much further to the political right. They are represented by organizations such as the New Democrat Network and the New Democrat Coalition.

After the landslide electoral losses to Ronald Reagan in the 1980s, a group of prominent Democrats began to believe their party was out of touch and in need of a radical shift in economic policy and ideas of governance. The Democratic Leadership Council (DLC) was founded in 1985 by Al From and a group of like-minded politicians and strategists. They advocated a political "Third Way" as an antidote to the electoral successes of Reaganism.

The landslide 1984 Presidential election defeat spurred "centrist" democrats to action, and the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC) was formed. The DLC, an unofficial party organization, played a critical role in moving the Democratic Party’s policies to the "center" of the political spectrum. Prominent Democratic politicians such as Senators Al Gore and Joseph Biden (both future Vice Presidents) participated in DLC affairs prior to their candidacy for the 1988 Democratic nomination.

...
Wikipedia