RFS feel-good update (10/5): What we can control
There's not a lot we have power over. So focus on what you can control: What you do between now & Election Day.
Hi all -
The last week has felt like one million years. In between when I write this and when you read it, the news could change ten times over.
So before I dive into a bunch of updates about Run for Something and our candidates, quick thoughts:
We can’t control anything about Trump. We can’t control Mitch McConnell. We can’t control the liars, the pandemic, the media, the Republican Party, and as much as some would like to armchair-quarterback the campaign, we can’t control what Joe Biden says or does, either.
Anxiety about all of that is absolutely understandable — and: unless you channel it into what you can control, that anxiety doesn’t serve you. If just sits, making you feel sick to your stomach, keeping you up at night, ruining your attention span and mood.
Consider: What can you control to affect the outcome of the election with the power and abilities you have? Are you making calls and sending texts for local candidates? (Check out a bunch of volunteer opportunities here!) Are you donating everything you can to state and local races that are still wildly underfunded but mission-critical to building sustainable power? Are you making sure your friends and family know how to vote, when to vote, and especially how important it is to vote the whole ballot?
Put your anxiety to work. I won’t make you feel bad for doomscrolling (I’m a prolific doomscroller too!) but I hope you’ll let that feeling of doom fuel you to do just a little bit more in the small part of the universe you have power over.
Now, to Run for Something updates…
First, a little bit of a bright spot: This stat from after the debate..
Second: We announced this week that RFS Ascend has invested more than $100k directly into state legislative candidates in PA & TX. We gave directly to the candidates so they can use the resources most efficiently. (See the full list of campaigns we gave to here.)
Keep that in mind as you read this: The Washington Post ran down the most important state legislatures for redistricting: TX state house, NC state house & senate, PA state house, MN state senate, MI state house, and IA state house. Fun fact, in 2020, Run for Something has endorsed 156 candidates in those six states alone because we get it: More state leg & local candidates running strong campaigns — in all parts of the state! — helps the entire party flip those chambers.
In candidate & alumni updates…
As Del. Danica Roem points out, the surge in early voting in Virginia so far is not just the byproduct of voter enthusiasm — it’s because the state legislature passed a fuckton of bills to make it easier to vote. Winning local elections is key to winning national elections!
Charisse Davis, Cobb County school board member (and RFS alum!) partnered with NowThis for a video on why voting the whole ballot matters. Watch!
MI Rep. Kyra Bolden is organizing half-mile marches on Sundays for folks to deposit ballots in drop-boxes. #Walkthevote is awesome.
Our partners at NowThis featured a ton of our candidates as part of their Face of Change series, including Brittney Rodas (PA), Brendan Johnson (MI), Megan McCallister (MI), Kim Jackson (GA), Mauree Turner (OK), Ricky Hurtado (NC), Kelsey Waits (MN), Franccesa Cesti-Browne (FL), Natali Hurtado (TX), Akilah Bacy (TX), Ricky Junquera (FL), Elizabeth Beck (TX), Sarah McBride (DE), and more.
She The People put out their list of top 20 down-ballot candidates to watch, including our very own Michele Rayner (FL), Gabriella Cázares-Kelly (AZ), Madinah Wilson-Anton (DE), Akilah Bacy (TX), Francesca Hong (WI), and Alexsis Rodgers (VA).
Rep. Tram Nguyen is the first person of color to represent her district in the MA statehouse — her campaign is now under siege with racist robocalls. She’s not backing down.
I bet you didn’t realize how important mosquito control boards are or how many puns you could make— read this from the Naples Daily News to better understand why it matters (and note that we’ve endorsed Taruas Pugh for mosquito control board in Lee County!)
Meet the Sacramento “Squad” — which includes our alum, Katie Valenzuela and current candidate Mai Vang — who are pushing the city to get more progressive.
This is an awesome interview with Meredith Place, candidate for Kalamazoo County Clerk & Register of Deeds — an under-discussed position that directly affects voter engagement.
Nithya Raman’s deep and detailed understanding of the urgency around homelessness is one (of many!) reasons why we’re on her team in her campaign for Los Angeles City Council.
Alum Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta bounced around PA in a “Flip PA Tour,” meeting with 17 candidates trying to flip state legislative seats, including fellow RFS candidates Shanna Danielson and Brittney Rodas. You should also watch Rep. Kenyatta on Maddow, as he explains what the state Republicans are doing to fuck with the process of counting ballots for the presidential election.
Rep. Jasmine Clark flipped a seat in the GA state house in 2018; now she’s fighting hard to keep it. We need to make sure a scientist like her stays in government!
Rep. Lindsay James won her seat in the IA state house in 2018; now she’s using her platform to encourage other young women to run for office, too.
If Natalia Cornelio wins her election for 351st Criminal Court District judge, she’ll be the first Latina out of 38 members in the Harris County criminal court system. Read this profile of her in Houston Style magazine.
Yassamin Ansari in Phoenix and Jose Garza in Austin are just two of many RFS candidates who are running to end police violence against BIPOC communities. (Nearly half of all the candidates in PFAW’s endorsement class are also RFS folks!)
A few newspaper endorsement alerts:
The Detroit News endorsed MI Rep. Mari Manoogian for re-election
The Orlando Sentinel endorsed FL Rep. Anna Eskamani for re-election
The Austin Chronicle endorsed David Chincanchan for Austin City Council.
The Chicago Sun-Times endorsed Ken Mejia-Beal for IL state house.
The Statesman endorsed Rep. Erin Zwiener, Rep. James Talarico, and Rep. John Bucy III for re-election.
A bunch of our candidates put out new ads last week. A few to watch:
Some events to catch up on or keep on your radar:
Last week we held our third edition of Unapologetically Progressive, this time with amazing candidates in Arizona. I learned a ton — including that Arizona has a law on the books that bans abortion and restricts access to contraception, a law that Julie Gunnigle’s challenger, the incumbent Maricopa County Attorney, has committed to enforce if Roe v. Wade gets overturned. Watch the full hour here. Then sign up for our next edition on 10/15, with amazing candidates from Pennsylvania.
ICYMI: Last week’s podcast episode was an interview with Max Prestigiacomo, Francesca Hong, and Nada Elmikashfi — three amazing alum in Wisconsin — about protesting. Tomorrow’s episode is an interview with Brittney Rodas, an amazing state legislative candidate in PA who’s running to flip a seat. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.
Thank you for sticking with us. The only way out is through — let’s get through it together.
- Amanda