Most folks who read Daily Kos have heard by now, but if you haven’t — we have big elections in Virginia this year. On November 7th, we elect a governor, lt. governor, attorney general, and all 100 house of delegates (our lower state house.) If you’re in another state, you might be wondering what the big deal is, or why you should care.
Here’s the sparks notes version:
- Virginia and New Jersey are the only states with large-scale elections this year. New Jersey’s won’t be very competitive given their current governor.
- Virginia has become a more reliably blue state over the years, but is still largely a bellwether for the rest of the nation. We have all Democratic statewide elected officials, but both of our state houses are controlled by Republicans. Democrats only have 34 seats out of 100 despite the voting population being about 52% Democratic.
- We get to set the tone for 2018 and the next 3 years. If we keep control of our top ticket seats and pick up a lot of delegate seats, we’ll send a clear message to Republicans across the country that Trump is hurting them. If we fall short, or lose, the GOP will continue to stand behind him until next year.
- Taking control of our House of Delegates gets us out of the danger zone of a Constitutional Convention. Republicans are only a few state house controls away from being able to call a Constitutional Convention and do whatever they want to our most sacred document, and we want to build a buffer. Virginia can be that buffer.
- Gains on the state level this year in Virginia will help us win Congressional seats next year. More Democratic delegates can serve as great field generals to take out Republican congressmen and congresswomen in 2018.
- The GOP’s Governor Candidate is Ed Gillespie, who wrote the playbook on gerrymandering. If we don’t keep him from winning, we’ll lose any chance of redistricting reform for nearly a generation.
The nation is watching, and we have to do whatever we can to win big next month. Part of that is making sure we have as many folks registered and ready to vote as possible, and ensuring that folks who are already registered are up-to-date. October 16th is the last day to register or update existing voter registration.
If you live in Virginia, make sure you’re registered and up-to-date. Tell all your friends.
If you don’t live in Virginia, still tell all of your Virginian friends, and consider contributing to groups who are pushing to get as many folks registered as possible:
- VOICE — a non-partisan interfaith group dedicated to civic engagement.
- New Virginia Majority — the largest progressive group in the state, fights for increased voter participation and advocates for justice and fairness in all realms.
- Let America Vote — a voting rights advocacy group actively combating voter suppression efforts; currently assisting Virginia Delegate campaigns.
I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention 90 for 90.org, which is a dedicated resource for those devoted to voter participation. The site and initiative was created in honor of Dr. Ferguson Reid, a civil rights activist and the first African American elected to the Virginia state house since Reconstruction. Pick a candidate and help them!