RFS feel-good update (4/10): Winning big!
Plus: Why this work still matters even after all this time
Hi all -
Last week was an emotional roller coaster: The big wins in Wisconsin (and for us, elsewhere!) were followed by the tumult in Tennessee and then abortion access taking yet another loss via a conservative judge’s absolutely bananas ruling in Texas. This email covers it all — but let’s start with the good stuff: Winning!
Here’s the rundown:
All SIX of our Democracy Defenders won in Wisconsin!!! Congrats to Theresa Boston for Lima Township Supervisor, Jael Currie for Madison Common Council, Derek Field for Madison Common Council, Jeffrey Jackson for Middleton City Council, Satya Rhodes-Conway for mayor of Madison. and Anissa Welch for mayor of MIlton.
Also in Wisconsin: Juliana Bennett for Madison Alder, Garner Moffat for Superior City Council and MGR Govindarajan for Madison Common Council — all big wins for progress!
In Denver: Sarah Parady won her at-large seat on the Denver City Council and Candi CdeBaca is moving on to a run-off.
Brodey Weber is moving on to a run-off for Lincoln City Council in Nebraska.
Ronnie Mosley won his race for Chicago alderman
Daniela Velazquez won her race for St. Louis Board of Alders — read more in the NYT about how her race in particular was centered on abortion access.
Alisha Sonnier won her race for St. Louis Board of Alders. Look at this joy!!
And some big primary victories will be moving on to the general election: Michael Kelly and Justin Short for Kansas City city council seats & James Michael Bower for Lincoln City Council
More broadly, and as you probably celebrated on Tuesday night and Wednesday: Winning the Wisconsin Supreme Court seat is the quintessential example of how in order to win the big elections, we need to win the small ones first. The state Supreme Court seat will be transformative for the state and country; congrats to everyone who played a part in that race.
In other RFS community updates:
MI Rep. Laurie Pohutsky’s legislation eliminating the state’s archaic abortion ban was officially signed into law this week!
For Oregon Sen. Winsvey Campos - the youngest state senator in OR’s history - a proposed law limiting rent increases is personal; at one point a few years ago, she had to stop paying for health insurance in order to afford her rent increase.
Nebraska Sens. John Frederickson and Megan Hunt (both RFS alum!) joined Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh to launch the Don’t Legislate Hate PAC, focusing on stopping anti-trans legislation across state legislatures.
Also from Nebraska: Sen. Eliot Bostar is one of many RFS alum nationwide pushing legislation to implement universal free school meals.
PA Rep. Emily Kinkead: “Every good story needs a villain, and in the story of Pennsylvania’s 2023-24 budget, it seems like the Republicans who’ve controlled the state Senate since 1994 have found the bad guy they want you to hate: hungry children who expect to eat food every day.”
WV Del. Kayla Young’s legislation raising the minimum age for marriage to 16 was signed into law this week.
Abdul Osmanu, councilman in Hamden, CT, makes the case for pushing for transforming public transportation in the state, and quotes Big Boi of Outkast in the process.
NC Rep. Terry Brown is leading on bipartisan legislation that would create a legal procedures for domestic violence victims to get debts cancelled.
Just for kicks: Watch Orange County school board member Maria Salamanca call out some egregious bullshit.
NV. Assemblywoman Selena Torres is leading on legislation to overhaul the governing framework for sexual harassment in higher education.
Building that bench! Two higher office campaign launches this week:
Phoenix City Councilwoman Yassamin Ansari kicked off her campaign for Congress in Arizona’s third district.
PA State Rep. Sara Innamorato launched her campaign for Allegheny County Executive, a huge job.
As for the two other stories of the work — they’re both key reminders of why this work matters:
The expulsion of Reps. Justin Jones and Justin Pearson in Tennessee — two young Black lawmakers who’d been protesting the inaction on preventing gun violence — and the ensuring protests and pushback from Tennessee voters once again shows the value of having leaders willing to fight, even in chambers we can’t flip immediately.
Meanwhile: The court ruling banning mifepristone — a pill that has been approved by the FDA for over 20 years and used safely since — puts abortion access at risk in all 50 states. What happens in a red state does not stay in a red state, which is one of many reasons why it matters for Democrats to invest everywhere, even if it can’t affect the control of a chamber or the White House.
On a different topic, but some interesting reading: Congress is getting older and older, which has direct consequences on the legislation they’re passing. Yikes. We’re slowly working to solve this by making the pipeline of talent younger, but it’ll take a while!
Finally: A big announcement is coming this week about Party for Something. Keep an eye on our social media and get your ticket now.
Thanks for making all this possible. We’re so lucky to do this work with you.
- Amanda