Democrats undeniably won huge on Tuesday night, but so did the Daily Kos community.
Daily Kos supported a number of candidates and causes in yesterday’s elections—13 in total. Of the 12 Democratic contenders and one ballot measure (to expand Medicaid in Maine), our endorsed candidates were wildly successful.
The majority of endorsements Daily Kos made this year were in Virginia, which makes sense, as there was quite a lot going on in the Old Dominion in 2017. We endorsed Democratic Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam in his race against Ed Gillespie for the governorship; Northam romped to a massive 54-45 percent win over the Republican, and the $65,000-plus our community donated to him through more than 9,000 low-dollar contributions helped support that victory.
Daily Kos’ support was not only a rebuke to Gillespie’s odious campaign tactics, which were the most racist and divisive in modern Virginia political history, but we also helped elect a progressive champion in Northam, who will now continue his fight for gun safety, abortion rights, and better education funding while combatting the extreme agenda of legislative Republicans with his veto pen. And having a Democrat in Virginia’s governor’s mansion during the next round of redistricting will prevent another Republican gerrymander of that state’s congressional and legislative districts.
Daily Kos also endorsed nine Democratic challengers who ran in Republican-held districts in the Virginia House of Delegates. A record number of Democrats took on Republican incumbents this cycle—54, to be exact, out of the 66 seats held by the GOP. We endorsed nine of these challengers, many of them longer-shot races, but all featuring great candidates committed to bringing diverse perspectives and progressive values to the Capitol. The Daily Kos community supported these candidates to the tune of over $231,000 through more than 50,000 small-dollar, grassroots donations. And beyond dollars, upwards of 1,500 Daily Kos activists signed up to volunteer in these races.
This support paid off in a big way. Eight of our nine candidates—Jennifer Carroll Foy, Chris Hurst, Danica Roem, Hala Ayala, Schuyler VanValkenburg, Debra Rodman, Elizabeth Guzman, and Cheryl Turpin all won their races outright, and Donte Tanner, our ninth endorsee, is likely headed to a recount in his race. These challengers were part of the most diverse slate of candidates in the state’s history, and our roster include Virginia’s first transgender lawmaker, its first two Latina lawmakers, and six of the 10 new women lawmakers in the House of Delegates.
Cheryl Turpin’s victory in the 85th District brings us particular satisfaction, though.
When she first ran for this seat in a special election in January, the partisan performance of her district (Trump carried it, and it’s been reliably red in odd-numbered years) made it a very long shot for Team Blue. Never afraid of long shots, though, Daily Kos jumped into the fray—the only progressive group that directed any material resources Turpin's way. But with our help, she came surprisingly close to winning 10 months ago, and we are delighted we could help her cross this finish line this time around.
Daily Kos was also thrilled to support Democrat Manka Dhingra in her race for the Washington state Senate in the 45th District, a contest that put majority control of the chamber—and full Democratic control of state government—at stake. Dhingra’s win makes Washington the nation’s eighth Democratic “trifecta” state, with a Democrat already in the governor’s mansion and a Democratic-majority state House. Now that Democrats are fully in charge, policies like paid sick leave for working families and expanded access to birth control that Republicans had blocked for years can finally move forward, and the West Coast is firmly established as a blue wall against the disastrous policies of Donald Trump.
And while she didn’t win outright, we’re very pleased by the performance of a Georgia state Senate candidate on Tuesday night, too. We endorsed Democrat Jen Jordan in a fractured eight-way contest to replace a Republican lawmaker in Senate District 6. While Jordan didn’t clear the 50 percent threshold required to avoid a runoff election, she came in first and will be one of two Democratic candidates on the ballot Dec. 5. We support Jordan and want her to win, but whatever happens, we’ve definitely flipped this seat, which breaks the Republican supermajority in this legislative chamber.
Last but certainly not least, Daily Kos was proud to support Mainers for Health Care in a successful effort to pass a ballot measure expanding access to Medicaid under Obamacare. The overwhelming passage of Question 2 (59-41 percent) will expand access to health care to 70,000 residents of Maine. It’s a huge rebuke to GOP Gov. Paul LePage, who had vetoed Medicaid expansion five times, and it’s a great capstone to a year in which Republicans tried everything they could to repeal health care. Instead, we’ve expanded it.
Daily Kos has endorsed hundreds of candidates and causes over the years, but it's safe to say we’ve never had a night like Tuesday, when virtually everyone we backed proved victorious. But now is not the time to rest on our laurels—it’s time to press our advantage and squeeze Republicans as hard as we possibly can.
Several House races are still up in the air in Virginia, and with Republicans clinging to just a 51-49 majority, the balance of power is at stake. Some of the closest races could yet change hands, but they’ll require expensive recounts. Virginia Democrats are understandably tapped out, so we need to help replenish their coffers straight away.
Please give $3 today to help Democrats win these overtime contests in Virginia and turn the House blue!