RFS feel-good update (11/28): Another RFS alum makes it to statewide office
Read about “the biggest expression yet of an ongoing generational change in local politics” in Allegheny County, PA
Hi all -
This has been a record-setting election for us, so we have a lot to be thankful for this year. First and foremost, we’re grateful to have you on our team. We hope you ate some good food, had some time to relax, and celebrated the U.S. men’s soccer team’s 0-0 draw against England 🎉.
There are still more votes to be counted across the country, and we’ll be excited to celebrate more races as they’re called, but we’re also already busy working on 2023 recruitment (well actually we started months ago, but now it’s our focus). We’re doubling down on our Clerk Work efforts for next year, and the first filing deadline is just over five weeks away in Wisconsin - on January 3rd. There are thousands of offices up for election in 2023, meaning there’s no off-year at RFS and we aren’t slowing down.
We’re also very excited to host Run for Something’s 4th Annual Alumni Awards THIS WEDNESDAY. Don’t miss your chance to (virtually) hang out with our winners and celebrate their achievements. Grab your free tickets today, and join us on Wednesday (Nov. 30) at 7:30 p.m. ET.
We had more history makers clinch wins and shine in the national spotlight this past week:
Noelia Corzo will be the first Latina to sit on the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors in California, and will be the only woman on the Board for at least the next two years.
“This is significant for the Latino community. We can now see ourselves reflected in the leadership — that someone that sounds like us, looks like us, lives like us, will now represent them.”
Aisha Wahab is the first Muslim and the first Afghan American elected to the California State Senate: Wahab and her sister were adopted by an Afghan family in Fremont, home to one of the largest Afghan communities in the United States. But her family struggled with the rising cost of living. In 2011, her parents lost their business and their home was foreclosed on. After being priced out of Fremont, Wahab and her family moved to Hayward, where she became a community organizer and an advocate for affordable housing.
The Los Angeles City Council could have a new progressive voting bloc to create “bold solutions that in previous years were blocked,” thanks in part to Hugo Soto-Martinez’s win.
In Michigan, Jaime Churches will be one of 11 former public school teachers in the state legislature this upcoming session.
She said the state should prioritize investing in teachers, and that the slate of Democratic candidates who ran this year made her optimistic about the state of politics in Michigan. “I totally believe that growth is coming,” she said. “Growth happens in uncomfortable situations, I think I see that as a teacher. I know all learning occurs from being uncomfortable.”
And take 53 seconds to watch this clip of Nabeela Syed on MSNBC to see why we’re so excited about her win:
Votes are still being counted from this midterm cycle, but Democratic organizers say the time to prepare for 2024 is NOW. @NabeelaforIL explains what she learned campaigning this year -- and how it can help liberals nationally. WATCH:RFS alum Kyra Harris Bolden, a 34-year-old State Representative, will be appointed by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to the state’s Supreme Court. She will be the first Black woman to serve as a Michigan Supreme Court justice and the third RFS alum to make it to statewide office.
“Kyra is passionate about the law and will be the first Black woman ever to serve on the Michigan Supreme Court,” Whitmer said. “She will bring a unique perspective to our high court as a Black woman — and as a new working mom — that has too long been left out.”
She will join the Court in January and will be on the ballot in 2024 for a full term that runs through 2028. One of our favorite reads of the week was this profile on Kyra in The 19th, which highlights the stakes of her appointment for abortion access and threats to democracy in Michigan:
“Part of our job is making sure that people are aware of how the Michigan Supreme Court will affect their daily lives going forward, and honestly, generations to come,” Bolden said. “Whether or not you’re able to vote on a particular ballot petition doesn’t just affect the people of today.”
To Michigan progressives and abortion advocates, Bolden was precisely the kind of candidate that they hoped could break through and draw voters’ attention — not just to the election at the very top of the ticket, but for judicial races and two highly watched ballot initiatives, on abortion and voting rights.
“We’ve been excited about all of our state Supreme Court candidates that we’ve had in the past, but Kyra is especially awesome,” said Lonnie Scott, executive director of Progress Michigan, a hub for progressive activism in the state. “The progressive community is very excited about her candidacy.”
And in more RFS alum good news…
RFS alums Sara Innamorato, Bethany Hallam, and La'Tasha Mayes are part of “the biggest expression yet of an ongoing generational change in local politics” in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.
Ann Arbor City Councilmember Travis Radina was elected by the Council as mayor pro tem. He will be the city’s “first openly gay mayor pro tem in over two decades.”
“Radina, D-3rd Ward, said he was honored to be chosen Monday night to serve as mayor pro tem… ‘I am particularly humbled to be selected by the current composition of City Council, which as of this evening has become the most diverse in our city’s history.’” #A2CouncilDiversity of Ann Arbor's new City Council celebrated at first meeting https://t.co/wwnVKjdqWS
The Ann Arbor News @annarbornewsHarris County Attorney Christian Menefee successfully stood up for his constituents after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton tried once again to disenfranchise voters.
The New York City Council on Thursday passed Queens Councilmember Tiffany Cabán’s first-of-its-kind program that will provide survivors of domestic violence access to emergency grants to help cover the cost of housing and other needs.
And read this op-ed in the Austin American-Statesman co-authored by Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza, an RFS alum, about the county’s work to build a gun violence prevention ecosystem.
In Travis County, gun violence is the number one cause of non-accidental death. Instability caused by the pandemic and easy access to firearms has led to increases in gun violence across the country, in both rural and urban communities. Mass shootings and violence pose a threat to our public safety.
We’ll leave you with the lede of a guest essay in The New York Times by John Della Volpe, the director of polling at the Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics: Republicans, Fear the Young.
Stressed and sickened by thoughts of their rights and democracy slipping away, young Americans across gender, racial, geographic and education lines banded together last week to help save the Democrats from what many foresaw as a sizable midterm defeat. If the elections had been decided by voters 45 and older, Republicans would have won the House by an even greater margin and likely taken the Senate. But thanks to young voters (especially the 18-to-29 age group, which had the second-highest turnout in midterm elections in almost 30 years, according to early estimates from Tufts University), Democrats retained the Senate, showing that an alliance of Gen Z and millennial voters answered history’s call to defend democracy. The majority of them rejected the big lie. They possess the turbulent, kinetic energy that withstands red waves. They will propel Democrats’ progressive agenda forward if the party seizes the moment.
That’s all for this week. Along with all the feel-good news that happens between now and then, next week we’re going to introduce you to our nine Gen Z winners from this cycle. So look for that next Monday!
Thank you,
Ross and Abe
P.S. Since it’s Cyber Monday, we can’t let you go without dropping a link to the RFS store. Buy some gear for yourself or someone you think should run for office!