RFS feel-good update (8/17): Big wins & a convention keynote!!
Hi all -
Last week was an emotional roller coaster — and with the convention starting tonight, this one will be just as much of a ride. Buckle up: We’ve got a lot to talk about!
First up: We had more candidates win big in Wisconsin, Vermont and Minnesota. Congrats to:
Taylor Small, who won a competitive primary — if she can beat an independent opponent this fall, she’ll be Vermont’s first trans lawmaker
Kristina Sheldon, who beat an incumbent with a history of sexually harassing staffers and will take a seat in the WI state assembly.
Francesca Hong, who crushed a 7-way primary and will be the first Asian American to serve in the WI state assembly
Cedrick Frazier, who won a competitive primary for the MN state house
If you’re excited for the convention: RFS alum MI Rep. Mari Manoogian and PA Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta will be speaking as part of the keynote address at the convention on Tuesday. We’ll be tuning in to support them — hope you will be, too!
Finally, last week’s Armchair Chat on digital advertising with Tim Lim generated another 100k views. If you missed it, catch up! We’re on pause this week for the DNCC, but we’ll be back on 8/26 at 6pm ET with Cortney Tunis of Supermajority/Pantsuit Nation for a conversation on storytelling & persuasion.
In other RFS candidate & alumni updates:
GA state Rep. Beth Moore set up a hotline for folks feeling unsafe in their schools — she got more than 650 tips from parents, students, and teachers about problems in the state.
In NC, Ricky Hurtado is running to flip a seat in the state legislature — his campaign was set up specifically to reach & energize Latinos in his district. Read more on how the pandemic has changed his operation, and a broader look on how Latinos have become a growing group of powerful voters in the South.
Elisha Crader and Lacei Amodei — running on a slate together for Hayward City Council in CA — are part of a cohort of candidates using tools like TikTok, Instagram Live, Zooms, Facebook videos, and more to reach voters during the pandemic.
Torrey Harris & Brandon Thomas could make history this fall by becoming Tennessee’s first openly LGBTQ+ members of the state legislature.
In GA, Kim Jackson is on her way to being Georgia’s first ever LGBTQ state senator. Making history is just the best.
During her campaign to flip a state legislative seat in 2018, Rep. Sydney Batch was diagnosed with breast cancer. She won the election, and more importantly, overcame the odds against her as a Black woman facing breast cancer.
The Austin City Council - including RFS alum Paige Ellis - voted to cut the police department’s budget by one third and reinvest the funds in social services. This is huge progress.
A letter to the editor supporting state Rep. Chloe Maxmin’s campaign for Maine state senate from someone who’s known her since she was 7 years old.
The architect of Florida’s racist poll tax law resigned from his seat (to take another corrupt position in state gov’t), leaving RFS candidate Jessica Harrington to compete for an open seat in the state house; now there are questions of whether he was on the ballot legally at all. This is why it matters to contest every election — you never know what might happen!
NowThis continues to highlight RFS candidates like Mauree Turner in Oklahoma
Allegheny County Councilperson Bethany Hallam is also a member of the county’s Jail Oversight Board; as such, she’s leading a review of the county’s classification process for trans people, which as it currently stands, can misgender those being arrested.
IN NYC, RFS candidates Amanda Septimo, Marjorie Velazquez and state senator Alessandra Biaggi are part of a wave of women taking on and beating the Bronx boys club. You love to see it.
In some other odds & ends for you…
I sat down with The Atlantic to talk about the complicated exciting overwhelming nervewracking moment we’re in with Sen. Kamala Harris as our vice presidential nominee — and how the best part of it all is how many young women of color will be inspired to run themselves.
“Our leaders see millennials as children with nice ideas, not as equals ready to take our fair share of power. If we want the future to look brighter, let's elect the people who have a bigger stake in it.” - a must-read op-ed from Jill Filipovic on CNN.com on why it’s time to elect millennials. (A reminder/fun fact: The average House member is 58; the average senator is 63. The average state legislator is 56. The average mayor is 57. The median age of school board members is 59.)
While the presidential campaign is raising buckets of money, Democrats running for state legislature in both Florida and Texas are being drastically outraised. We can’t count on the top of the ticket to bring up the coattails — we have to invest locally to win these state chambers and build sustainable power.
Need to be convinced even further? Dan Pfeiffer wrote about why it matters to win state legislatures more broadly and the Texas state house specifically: Because if we don’t, flipping the state blue will be a one-time blip in history.
If you’re looking for a movie to watch, we highly recommend Represent, a powerful new documentary on three women who made history in their campaigns for local government. You can get tickets in a virtual cinema here.
Finally, a heads up: Later this month, we’re launching a new event series called Unapologetically Progressive. Starting 8/25 and every other week after, we’ll be diving in with a crew of state & local candidates from key battleground states (TX, MI, AZ, PA, and FL) to get the lay of the land and find out how we all can help. Join the host committee for the entire series with a single $100 (or more!) donation.
Hope you’re staying safe, sane, grounded, and as hopeful as possible even when all evidence might lead you to feel otherwise. Thanks for being part of our team.
- Amanda