Long-time lurker (since 2017!), first-time poster with what will hopefully be a useful series of posts for people about the Democratic candidates who are almost guaranteed to lose their general election bids, but who nonetheless deserve our attention—not only for their willingness to be sacrificial candidates, but for their willingness to reach out to voters even though, truthfully, those voters will probably never break our way
I have no real set order for this series, so going alphabetically by state seems useful enough. Below the cut are the ‘no-hoper’ candidates for Alabama.
(As a reminder: Alabama’s runoffs are now taking place on July 14, 2020.)
Alabama’s 1st congressional district
A 67% white, R+15 district by Cook PVI, this congressional district has basically not moved politically in the past 20 years. Trump’s 64-34 win in 2016 under the current lines is hardly a departure from Bush’s 60-38% win in 2000; Bradley Byrne’s 63-38 win in 2018 is similarly close to Jo Bonner’s 60-38 win in 2002. No Democratic House candidate has won the region that makes up the current 1st congressional district since 1962 (or, 1964, if you would prefer to count the brief at-large district which elected 8 Democrats)—a time in which it was split between two districts. This is not about to change in 2020.
However, two Democratic candidates have advanced to the runoff here, both of whom are very decent people and, presumably, very decent candidates.
Kiani Gardner
Website: Kiani Gardner for Congress
Twitter: @KianiGardner
Facebook: VoteKiani
Kiani Gardner was the first-place vote-getter in the primary which took place on March 3, and it’s fairly easy to see why that is. I’ll let her explain her own credentials:
Kiani received her bachelor’s degree in Biology from Washington University (St Louis, MO) and her Ph.D. in Cell Biology from Duke University (Durham, NC). As a research scientist, she studied a variety of questions in fields ranging from plant biochemistry to bacterial division.
(Gardner is also a mother of two sons, a foster parent, and until a few months ago a full-time community college professor on top of this! That’s quite a commitment.)
Gardner is campaigning on pretty standard Democratic positions (Medicaid expansion, universal background checks, investing in election infrastructure, and climate change policies which address local issues), but she also defines herself uniquely with her commitment to openness and transparency and a plan for proactive emergency management:
In Lower Alabama, the question isn’t “if” a weather emergency will happen, the question is “when”. [...] We need a federal emergency management budget that aims to primarily mitigate disaster damage rather than provide for disaster relief. We need raised roadways, capacity insurance in our wastewater system, stu[r]dier bridges (that are NOT profiting internationally-held corporations) that can withstand 100 ft storm surges, an improved emergency early-warning system, and detailed emergency management plans.
James Averhart
Website: James Averhart for Congress
Twitter: @JAverhart2020
Facebook: AverhartForCongress
The other candidate in the runoff and second-place vote-getter in the primary, James Averhart is a native of Mobile, the largest city in AL-01. Averhart has an even more storied record than Gardner, although in a very different direction—Averhart was a Marine from 1987 to 2017, receiving multiple decorations for his service:
James’ personal military decorations include the Legion of Merit; Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal (w/Four Gold stars in lieu of fifth award); Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal (w/gold star in lieu of third award); Combat Action Ribbon; Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal (w/three bronze stars); and the Marine Corps Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal (w/gold star in lieu of second award).
Averhart has a bachelor’s in criminal science, a doctorate in theology, and is working toward a doctorate in organizational management currently. Additionally, he’s an NAACP member and the founder and president of a non-profit which helps former prisoners re-integrate with society.
Beyond the standard Democratic positions, Averhart places significant emphasis on agricultural policy reforms, including “Immigration Reform, Farmland Preservation, Food Safety and Labeling, Innovative Crops (i.e., industrial hemp), Tax Reform, and Farmer Aging and Transition”. (Alabama has a surprisingly large agricultural output.)
Alabama’s 2nd congressional district
Alabama’s 2nd congressional district is nearly identical to the 1st congressional district: 63% white, R+16 district by Cook PVI, largely politically unchanged at the presidential level since 2000 (Bush 61-38 in 2000, Trump 65-33 in 2016). Although this region has been more fertile for Democrats than the 1st congressional district (Bobby Bright was elected as a Democrat for one term in 2008, and Martha Roby had close races in 2010 and 2016), it is almost certain to stay blood-red Republican in 2020.
Phyllis Harvey-Hall
Website: Harvey-Hall to Congress
Twitter: @PhyllisDHHall
Facebook: HarveyHallforHouse
Phyllis Harvey-Hall is the Democratic candidate for this district, having advanced from the primary by a 59-40 margin over Nathan Mathis. Harvey-Hall has an inspiring story: she is a first-generation college graduate, and spent 25 years in the Montgomery public school system passing on her education to children. (She was nonetheless forced to work multiple jobs during at least some of her tenure as a teacher.)
Harvey-Hall is a fairly standard Democrat, but she has three major campaign focuses: education, rural development, and veteran & elderly healthcare. Among her more unique and local positions, Harvey-Hall supports expanding agricultural programs in schools, broadband internet access, federal grants and programs for the elderly, and making social and emotional learning a part of education. She supports Medicare and Medicaid expansion and STEM education.
Alabama’s 4th congressional district
This district is, to understate it, ruby red. 88% white and sitting at R+30 by Cook PVI, this congressional district was red 20 years ago and redder still today. From 61-37 Bush in 2000, this district was Trump’s strongest by vote share in 2016, giving him an 80-18 win. The closest this district has likely been in the past 30 years is in 1996 following Democrat Tom Bevill’s retirement, when incumbent Republican Robert Aderholt carried it by less than a point. These days, a measly 25% of the vote probably qualifies as a “good” result for a Democrat in this district.
Nevertheless, there’s a Democratic candidate here!
Ricky "Rick" Neighbors
Website: Neighbors 4 Congress
Twitter: @VoteNeighbors
Ricky Neighbors was the sole Democrat to file here, making him the uncontested candidate in the general election. Neighbors comes from a military family (both his father and grandfather served), and served three tours in Vietnam himself. He was able to attend college through the GI Bill, and spent 35 years in the apparel industry.
Neighbors is an interesting candidate as far as policy, especially relative to the district he’s running in. He is supportive of the Affordable Care Act and moderate in position on healthcare, but seems more radical in his other policy focuses. He seems to support free college on some level (“there is absolutely no reason that every student seeking out education beyond high school shouldn’t be able to go to college debt free and no working family should have to pay to send their child to a public college or university”) and seems to be generally against trade deals as they’ve currently been negotiated. Less surprisingly, he is a big supporter of broadband internet expansion, which he sees as a way to mitigate the negative impacts of trade agreements.
What might be most interesting about Neighbors however is his use of his campaign as a mutual aid network during the current COVID-19 crisis. In the campaign’s words:
Effective immediately, our Neighborhood of Volunteers will focus on what we can do to help during the Covid-19 pandemic. We’ve expanded our Neighbors Helping Neighbors campaign to reach out to those most vulnerable and lend assistance.
True to form, he has helped the area tremendously in weathering the current crisis. In addition to organizing communities and helping at-risk families and individuals in the district, earlier this month, Neighbors has helped to procure necessary supplies for northern Alabama. His campaign continues to check in on and help people in AL-04; if you’d like to donate to his efforts he has both a PayPal and an ActBlue.
I hope this post has been helpful in informing you about or making you aware of these candidates. We understandably focus on the big names or competitive districts, but I think it’s important to also give some attention to the smaller, less-viable candidates who languish in obscurity, and that’s generally my intent with this series since I’ve never seen someone specifically focus on these people in Democratic spaces.
It might not seem like it, but I’d argue that the most important candidates are the ones who have basically no chance, but run anyways—the people who run in places with little to no party infrastructure, few if any friendly faces, and very little or no national or state backing. Their selflessness in the face of almost certain defeat is part of what makes it possible to vote for a congressional Democrat nearly everywhere in America.
And, who knows? Maybe one of the people here (or in future installments) will be our next Kendra Horn or Joe Cunningham, a candidate who defies odds and polls and pulls off a stunning upset. You never really know in politics until it happens, do you?