RFS feel-good update (1/9): Our alums took office across the country last week 🎉
Real headline of the week: Republicans Can’t Decide Whether to Woo or Condemn Young Voters
We hope your new year is off to a better start than Kevin McCarthy’s! Run for Something was back in the office last week after taking time off in December to recharge and get ready for 2023 - we don’t have off years!
ICYMI, we officially had our best election ever in 2022! 259 RFS-endorsed candidates won in November, a win rate of nearly 53%. You can see all of our winners on our Medium page. We are very proud that of this group:
58% are women
54% are people of color
25% are a part of the LGBTQIA+ community
10 are GenZ
We also had two RFS alums officially become members of Congress! Congratulations to Representatives Jasmine Crockett and Yadira Caraveo.
Over the weekend, we had our first in-person school board candidate training! It was a huge success, and we can’t wait to hold more of these all over the country.
And our See Yourself Running: Election Administrators webinar is tonight at 8pm Eastern. Please either sign up to join us or send the link to someone that you think should.
This New York Times headline sure got our attention over the weekend: Republicans Can’t Decide Whether to Woo or Condemn Young Voters. You should read the whole article, but here are some of the highlights:
“So far, millennials — some of whom are entering their 40s — are betraying little sign of growing more conservative as they age. If those trends hold, it could make for some daunting electoral math for the right.”
“Millennials and Gen-Z voters came of age during tumultuous times — the Great Recession and the rise of movements like Occupy Wall Street, then the Trump presidency and the coronavirus pandemic — and share a skepticism of capitalism and a belief in the value of government to solve problems, Della Volpe noted.”
“And there are venerable organizations like the Young America’s Foundation, whose roots date to the days of William F. Buckley Jr., the founder of National Review. The foundation is now led by Scott Walker, the former governor of Wisconsin, who has oriented the group toward a longer-term approach of waging a battle of ideas from college campuses all the way down to middle schools.”
“According to an analysis of voter-file data from TargetSmart, a Democratic data firm, voters under 30 made up a larger percentage of the electorate in 2022 than they did in 2014 across seven battleground states.”
So Scott Walker is the GOP’s secret weapon to recruit middle schoolers to the conservative cause? Yikes.
One of the best parts about being back in the office last week was seeing all the RFS alums that were sworn into office all across the country!
And Nabeela Syed won’t be sworn in until Wednesday, but check out this amazing Chicago Tribune front page! (You can read the article here)
As you can see, RFS alums didn’t slow down after November:
The Associated Press wrote about the impact Zooey Zephyr’s move from advocate to elected official could have in Montana.
Zooey Zephyr worked behind the scenes during Montana’s 2021 legislative session to oppose an ultimately unsuccessful effort to ban transgender minors from receiving gender-affirming health care, including puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgery.
When the 2023 session starts next month, she'll face a similar challenge after a Republican lawmaker recently revealed he'll run the proposal again. The move comes as GOP lawmakers nationwide are expected to continue to push for limits on transgender rights.
This time, though, Zephyr will have a seat at the table. And a vote.
Cedrick Frazier will have a seat at the leadership table in Minnesota, as he was named co-chair of the Minnesota House People of Color and Indigenous Caucus.
Domonique Clemons, a Genesee County Commissioner, was appointed as the county’s Clerk-Register.
The duties of the position include being the clerk of several county agencies and boards, including the Circuit Court, the county commissioners, the Board of Canvassers, the Election Commission, the Plat Board, the Election Scheduling Committee, the Apportionment Board, and the Road Commission.
There are two years remaining in the term to which Gleason was elected in 2020.
Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee continues to stand up against attacks on our democracy by extremist Republicans.
Read about Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb’s efforts to make Cleveland a 15-minute city.
“We’re working toward being the first city in North America to implement a 15-minute city planning framework, where people—not developers, but people—are at the center of urban revitalization, because regardless of where you live, you have access to a good grocery store, vibrant parks, and a job you can get to,” Bibb said in his first State of the City speech in April.
And if you missed our last update, you missed our December endorsement class. But don’t worry, you can learn about all 20 members of the class on our Medium page.
Thanks to Emily from Denver for the shoutout on Lovett or Leave It!
We want to leave you with this CNN piece on Kyra Harris Bolden becoming first Black woman to serve on Michigan Supreme Court. Watch if you want to be inspired:
Have a great week!
Ross and Abe
P.S. We’re off next Monday for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, so we’ll be back in your inbox on Tuesday next week.