In American culture these days, the focus is on winning. Winning in sports, reality shows, the stock market, wars. Winners are celebrated and losers are shunned. In politics, if you lose, you can become a virtual pariah (think Dukakis - when was the last time he was at a democratic party event?). It is important to win, but as John Kerry proved with his 19-state campaign, focusing on the finish line without focusing on the path you use to get there can be a fatal mistake.
It is crucial that Democrats and progressives trapped in "red" districts feel that their voices are heard. To achieve that end, we MUST field candidates in all 435 congressional districts. We need a Dkos community effort to leave no district behind.
The response to last week's
diary was fantastic. It is clear we have enough support here at Dkos to mount a concerted effort to find and field candidates in the congressional districts where Republicans are currently running unopposed. Thanks to all who helped reshape the list of congressional districts where republicans are currently running unopposed for 2006 - especially
BENAWU for all your help. If my count is correct, we have 102 districts with Democratic slots to fill with candidates. It is now time for Phase 2.
PHASE 2
Here is a list of all the districts which currently have no 2006 Democratic candidate, along with the election results for Democrats from 2004.
The next step:
Kossacks can begin by helping to find candidates for the following 38 districts:
AL-2,4,6, AK-1, AZ-3, CA-19,21,22,41, FL-1,4,7,25, GA-6,7,9,10, IN-5, KY-5, LA-4,5,6, MO-7,8, MS-1,3, NC-3,6, OK-3,4, OR-2, SC-1,4, TN-1,2,7, TX-11,12,13, UT-1, VA-1,6,7
These are 20 districts where there was no Democratic candidate in 2004, and 18 where the Democratic candidate recieved under 30% of the vote in 2004. I think these districts are a good place to start. These are our most needy districts. What do I mean by needy? These are districts where Democrats and progressives are the most desperate for a voice to articulate their beliefs and needs. Can you imagine voting every year and having only the Republican party for which to vote? I can't. I probably would stay home, which I imagine many folks do.
These are the districts where to national party is least likely to recruit candidates in the next few months. We can make the most difference by starting with these.
For those who object to this, suggesting that no one would want to run if they are probably going to lose, I say you are missing the point. It is not about winning every race. This is not a reality show, this is reality. It is about real work, and it is about giving a voice to the voiceless. It is about motivating the base, and broadening that base for the future. 30% of the vote in these districts is often 80,000 votes. Multiply by 38 and that is 3,040,000. That is an enormous number of voters who never hear their beliefs articulated, and who don't bother to go to the polls because they feel hopelessly neglected politically. If we can field candidates in these districts we can give hope to over 3 million people!!!
We can find candidates for these districts if we work together. Do you live in these districts and are thinking about running? Do you know someone in these districts who might be interested? Let us know, we can help.
HOW IT WILL WORK
- 1. Please help us out by providing the following information in the comment section: What are the major cities in the 38 districts listed above? Do any of you live in these districts and wish to run, or can help find someone to run?
- 2. We can provide a framework to facilitate running for office. We can help you find information on how to get started, and what the requirements are in your state. All you have to do is ask and the Kossack army will go to work.
- 3. I have been corresponding with Benjamin Rahn, President of ActBlue. ActBlue is an organization which acts as a clearinghouse for congressional candidates. One service they offer is the opportunity to set up a fundraising webpage for a candidate. We should use their site to begin collecting funds for our candidates when we are ready to do so.
- 4. In the future, we can provide a forum for candidates to find volunteers, get campaign advice, raise money, and coordinate their message.
Thanks to
Rex Freedom we now have a
website with a list of all congressional districts and their current status. In addition, you will find there a map showing the status of all the districts. Rex is a volunteer with congressional candidate
Barry Welsh who helped kickstart this whole thing with his
original diary.
Rex's list includes info about which districts contain Republican Study Committee (RSC) candidates. The RSC is a particularly alarming wing-nut group seeking to pull the GOP far to the right. This group counts about 99 members of Congress in its membership, and it is imperative that we field good candidates in these districts to give voters a choice to vote these bums out.
This is an important, and exciting project for us to do as a community. I am filled with hope at the prospect of our little blog community recruiting and fielding a slate of well-qualified, well-supported candidates who make a difference to the voiceless. The health of our democracy depends upon our action.
WHAT YOU CAN DO RIGHT NOW
Let's begin with #1 from above: Please help us out by providing the following information in the comment section: What are the major cities in the 38 districts listed above? Do any of you live in these districts and wish to run, or can help find someone to run?