Across the country, there is a belief that the Democratic party has forgotten about voters in the heartland. In 2004, Democrats held 6 out of 8 Senate seats in North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, and Nebraska. That number is now 0. While some in the party think we should forget about these states, the people in the heartland are begging for support. Republicans have won in this region not due to their own skill or strength, but because we as a party, stopped trying. The bottom line is, if we run quality campaigns here, we can win. Our message to Washington: America’s heartland is ready to win.
Today, Democratic nominees for U.S. Senate Tom McDermott (Indiana), Brian Bengs (South Dakota), and Mark Holland (Kansas) are joining together to create a fundraising venture called the Heartland Senate Fund, with the intention of competing in the heartland again. 100 percent of the proceeds raised will be split evenly between the three U.S. Senate campaigns. We are running competitive races in the heartland, because we believe that if we try and give voters in these states a choice, we can win. Click here to donate!
As recently as 2018, Indiana had a Democratic Senator. In 2004, South Dakota had Democrats in every seat in the Congressional delegation, including the Senate Democratic Leader. In Kansas, Democrats have won 3 of the last 5 Gubernatorial elections, nearly four. During the primary, Kansas saw a historic turnout rivaling presidential levels that voted overwhelmingly to defend a woman’s right to choose, 59.16% to 40.84%.
Our campaigns have chosen to come together to endorse and help raise funds for our three competitive United States Senate campaigns. Here is more information regarding our candidates:
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Mark Holland For Kansas - Mark is a 4th generation Kansan and 3rd generation United Methodist Pastor. He has served as Mayor of Kansas City, Kansas and spent many years fighting for the rights of LGBTQIA+ individuals in the Methodist church. Mark is making the fight for women's rights central to his campaign after helping defeat an anti-choice amendment to the Kansas constitution on August 2nd by 18 points. We have the infrastructure, a strong slate of down ballot candidates, and an unpopular Republican incumbent who doesn't think we are a threat. We have a real shot in Kansas if given the financial resources. In August we protected the rights of women in Kansas. In November we will protect the rights of women across the nation.
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Brian Bengs For South Dakota - Brian is a 26-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force and Navy, where he was a JAG officer and retired as a Lt. Colonel. He grew up in a union family, in a small, rural town. He is fighting to give a voice to working-class South Dakotans who have been forgotten for far too long. Brian announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate following the terrible events that unfolded on January 6th. Brian has visited all 66 counties and all 9 tribal reservations in South Dakota, has raised nearly 8 times the amount of money than the last two opponents Sen. Thune had combined, had a viral video that had over 2 million views in 48 hours and was endorsed by seven former U.S. Senators. The campaign has a poll from a leading pollster saying that in a Republican +29 survey, if we can get our message out, we are winning 45% to 38%!
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Tom McDerrmott For Indiana - Tom McDermott is the 5-term Mayor of Hammond, IN, a veteran of the U.S. Navy, a husband, and father to four. After months of hard work and travel across the state, the “No Bullsh*t” McDermott campaign has seen two consecutive reputable polls go public that have Tom down by just 2 or 3 points. Tom brought in over $470,000 last quarter, bringing his fundraising total for the cycle to over $1.3 million. He just launched a $255,000 TV and digital ad buy, with more to come.
Every cycle, Democrats in D.C. are picking at straws, trying to find the Senate races to compete in. They write off half of the country before campaigns are able to even hire staff because they are deemed “red states”. These campaigns get little support from the national party, while tens of millions of dollars are pumped into other states deemed more competitive. If we truly believe in the 50 state strategy as our party claims we do, we need you to invest in our races to expand the map. The additional benefit of our races is that our states are significantly cheaper to compete in than in other traditional battleground states. Our seats have some of the cheapest media markets in the United States. A $10 donation in our states is the equivalent to a $100 donation in other battleground states.
We need you to donate $6, $15, or even $30, so we can put three extra Senate seats on the map. The Senate map is tightening and we as Democrats need to practice what we preach by competing in every state that we can. With your help, we will be able to start competing in the heartland, not only in this cycle, but for years to come.