That’s the thing. Most people don’t. Most people are actually fine with the status quo, and figure their district is doing ok, so leave it as-is. Folks tend to think it’s other places that are the problem.

People don’t want change. They want stability and to not starve. If those two qualifiers are met then voters don’t really care what the government does and they’re not inclined to vote incumbents out.

Many people have simply given up. They see the government as trash with nothing that can be done to change it.

Since Obama, that’s a bit of a problem. If your incumbent doesn’t scare non-voters from the other side into voting, they are logically the better vote than a “radical” newcomer. Obama proved there is a ridiculously large contingent of people that will entirely upend their entire political, economic, and social beliefs if faced with a possibility of a candidate that triggers a particular phobia or hate inside them.