Laying the groundwork to turn congressional seats blue next fall.
I know not a lot of attention get’s paid to state races o sites like Kos. It is sort of a shame because supporting these state races are critical to the health of our party. Particularly in what we commonly call “Red States” and “Red America.”
The benefits are varied and important.
- In the last cycle, we did not challenge for 1,479 state legislative seats. That translates to 117,000,000 potential constituents we did not seek to represent in state legislatures.
- In Virginia, the 43 seats unchallenged by Democrats in 2015 represent roughly 3.5 million Virginians. We are asking to represent 2.5 million more people this cycle. That can only benefit us.
- Supporting state legislative candidates now means trained field general’s for the fall campaign next year. Recognizable faces of people that were on the ground talking to voters and listening to their concerns, seeking to represent them will pay off big time.
- With resources, the campaign infrastructure they build can be used both by future candidates for that seat, for county or citywide races and up-ballot races. It is how we will turn red to blue.
- Even if you think some of these races are losing causes, having better connected Democratic representatives in the field in other elections will pay huge dividends.
- In the end, politics are local and fundamentally about relationships. Having more people with deeper local relationships will yield growth in the party and stronger results in future elections.
42 DAYS LEFT TO FLIP VIRGINIA BLUE THIS FALL.
Every odd year the entire Virginia House of Delegates stands for election in the fall. This really primes them to do real party building before the 2018 midterm. There are 42 days left until this years election on November 7th. Currently, Republicans hold 66 of those 100 seats. That means we need to flip 17 seats to turn Virginia blue this fall.
Now, that may seem like a daunting task, but, take heart, there are many great Democrats stepping up across the commonwealth. In the 2015 cycle, only 57 Democrats stepped up to the plate to run for those 100 seats. That meant that Republicans only needed to win 8 contested races to secure a majority. This year, 88 seats are being contested by Democrats, meaning Republicans must win 39 contested races to secure a majority. That is great news, but these great Democratic leaders need our help.
THEY HAVE HEEDED THE CALL, THEY NEED US TO HAVE THEIR BACKS.
The party largely seems to be focused on just 17 races. That is precisely the number we need to flip, and we will not win all of them. They picked these particular races because Clinton won the precincts in these districts, which is fine. That said, presidential races often do not translate into good midterm or off cycle results. As we saw in the Georgia 6th, it is not uncommon for lower ballot races to lag behind presidential results in the district.
Where we really have leverage and ground to gain rests in districts across the state, not just in those 17 races. Of course, there are a ton of great candidate in those 17 races already, but we need to support everyone taking the risk to run. It is with that in mind I am going to do a series of these posts featuring all of the Democratic candidates challenging currently red districts. There are 58 of those in total. Let’s take a look at some of the Northern Virginia Candidates first.
More NOVA CANDIDATES
Clicking on the District number will take you to a profile of the district. Clicking on the candidate name will take you to their web presence.
Click here to donate to Jennifer Foy's campaign.
When I was at Virginia Military Institute (VMI), I knew I had to defy the odds and graduate in order to have the opportunity to give back. I enrolled in the third class of female cadets to attend the historically all-male college. On my first day, they shaved my head and said, “Welcome to VMI.” My best male friend bet me a dollar that I wouldn’t last a year. Well, I won that bet and graduated with a degree in English.
I know the deck seems stacked against us. Washington is a mess and politicians prefer gridlock over results.
But every time I look my kids in the eyes, or walk into work as a public defender, I know we have to fight toward a fairer, stronger, and more just Virginia.
I’m running for delegate to continue to give back to the community that has given me so much.
Click here to donate to Danica Roem's campaign.
As a reporter, I had to listen to what people were saying and understand their reasoning, regardless of my own opinions. That’s something I had reinforced to me as the news editor of the Montgomery County Sentinel in Rockville, Md., where I worked from August 2015 until the end of 2016, when I left my post to run for office. It's a lot easier to judge people than understand them. Anyone can just spout off stuff but what makes journalism special is you have to actually pay attention, vet your facts, receive an earful from your editor and improve your work while reporting the news as a neutral, disinterested, third-party observer. Likewise, I want to bring to bring a reporter's sensibility to Mr. Jefferson's Capitol.
I'm running for office to help improve our quality of life by working on the issues I spent nine years reporting about for the newspaper.
At the same time, my number one job for the campaign isn't to speak... it's to listen to the residents, write down their concerns, ideas and questions, follow-up with them, and work what they tell me into my policy platform. That's how I took notes and wrote news stories and that's how I'll craft public policy: Research. Question. Listen. Report.
Click here to donate to Joshua Cole's campaign.
Joshua is motivated by the convictions of his faith and his civic duty to be a uniting force for a divided nation. If given the opportunity to serve as State Delegate for House District 28, Cole will advocate for public education, transportation, health care, criminal justice reform, environmental protection, and the rights of the LGBTQ community. Joshua hopes to be the first African American to represent the 28th District.
“I believe I have been called at this time to fight for all citizens in Virginia regardless of race, lifestyle or faith. For those who have no voice, I will be their voice!”
Click here to donate to Elizabeth Guzman's campaign.
Elizabeth came to the United States from Peru as a single mom, looking for a better future for her oldest daughter. She remembers those early years; working three jobs in order to afford a one-bedroom apartment for her and her daughter
Elizabeth Guzman - your committed, family-oriented candidate, fighting to represent the 31st district in the Virginia House of Delegates. I am running to be the first Hispanic woman in the Virginia Assembly, because I want to stand up for the thousands of people across my district and millions more across my state who feel like their diversity is not represented in Richmond. I need YOUR help to make a difference!
She fell in love with Prince William County because of all of the opportunity the area offered to her as a community leader and homeowner, and her desire to raise her children in a diverse, engaging environment.
Click here to donate to Kathy Tran's campaign.
Kathy Tran and her parents fled Vietnam as boat refugees when she was just seven months old. On the voyage, she grew so sick she almost died at sea. Although many other countries offered them asylum, they waited 13 months for the United States to accept their application. Kathy's family risked everything to come to America because this country has always represented hope, opportunity and freedom. Now, she's running for the Virginia House of Delegates to fight for the American values that brought her family here.
Kathy has devoted her career to ensuring that all working families have the opportunity to achieve the American Dream.
Click here to donate to Lee Carter's campaign.
Born in North Carolina, Lee was raised in a military family, and traveled across the country during his father's service in the United States Navy and the United States Coast Guard. Lee is proud of his family's service to our country, and his family has served in all five branches of the United States military. For Lee, spending a life in service to others began in his childhood as a military brat and continued through his own service in the military and beyond.
Lee is committed to the 50th district, and will fight hard to address the challenges that residents in the community — and across the Commonwealth — face. He knows that a large part of public service is being active in the community and listening to constituents, and is committed to doing that for all residents in the 50th.
Throughout Lee's career and civic engagement his focus has been on helping others — whether that was in his service in the Marine Corps, helping provide cancer patients with consistent care by maintaining biomedical radiation therapy equipment, or assisting small local businesses with IT support.
Click here to donate to Hala Ayala's campaign.
As a member of Prince William County community for over 35 years, Hala Ayala is running to give a new, needed voice for the 51st House District of Virginia.
An Advocate for Working Families
Hala has personally experienced the challenges of single motherhood and lack of access to affordable health insurance. She understands the concerns of working families today. She has fought for raising the minimum wage, equal pay and affordable access to health care as the founder and former president of the Prince William County chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW).
Click here to donate to Steve Aycock's campaign.
I believe the progress we’ve made in freedom, social justice, healthcare, and economic stability is being threatened, and I believe that is crucial for everyone’s well-being to keep us moving forward, not backward.
We need a change in Richmond for the 88th House District. Our current delegate has been there for too long doing very little that is positive to make our everyday lives better. We need to strengthen education, especially vocational and technical education, as well as early childhood education. We need an economy in our area where jobs will support a family without having to commute hours every day. I will work to bring better paying jobs and improved educational opportunities to the people of my District.
To view an index of all Democrats challenging for Republican-held districts in this fall’s Virginia House of Delegates races click here.
Required Disclosure: My name is Donald Braden. I am the founder of The Full Slate Project and Full Slate Consulting. I am presently under contract with Freinds of Kimberly Anne Tucker, candidate for Virginia Beach District 81.
