RFS feel-good update (9/20): Big wins!! Big endorsements!!
No off years. Not a one.
Hi all -
Last week was very busy for the RFS team!
On Tuesday, we celebrated some big wins for RFS-endorsed candidates. A few highlights:
Justin Bibb came in first and advanced from the primary for mayor of Cleveland in a true grassroots victory against the establishment. This is a big deal. It was the first time there was a Cleveland mayoral election without an incumbent on the ballot in 2001. (Crain’s Cleveland’s takeaway from the election: “Run for Something is onto something.”)
Aisia Jones (ward 8), Rebecca Maurer (ward 12) and Ayat Amin (ward 3) all won their primaries for Cleveland City Council.
Kendra Hicks came in first in her preliminary for Boston City Council, and if she wins in November, will be the first Black woman to represent her district.
David Halbert and Ruthzee Louijeune both moved on from the preliminary for Boston City Council, at-large.
Then on Wednesday, we announced our last big class of endorsements for 2021. They’re all amazing — 20 of them are alum we’ve worked with before; 67 are running in 2021 and 19 are on the ballot in 2022. Scroll through the Medium post to read their bios; I just loved this tweet from Liz Olhsson:
This class brings our grand 2021 total to 391 candidates across 38 states. Some great stats:
53% are women
56% are people of color
27% identify as LGBTQIA+
62% identify as low income
30% identify as immigrants or first-generation Americans
96% are running for local office
68% are age 35 or younger.
Finally, on Friday, we kicked off our own celebration of Latinx Heritage Month — we’re raising money for Latinx candidates for local office across the country. Chip in now.
In other RFS candidate & alumni updates:
Angel Harris made history in 2020 when for the first time in 40 years, she beat an incumbent for a judgeship on the New Orleans Parish Criminal District Court. Nine months in, she explains what she’s been doing as judge to tackle mass incarceration.
WA rep. Kirsten Harris-Talley is part of a wave of activists in Washington who’ve gone from organizing and pushing elected officials to actually being elected themselves.
NY Sen. Andrew Gounardes wrote a powerful op-ed on the crisis on Rikers Island.
In Bon Appetit, WI Rep. Francesca Hong explains: “My Career in Restaurants Taught Me What Local Government Really Needs.”
Allegheny County Council members Liv Bennett and Bethany Hallam are proposing mask mandates as cases spike in the Pittsburgh area.
Keanuú Smith-Brown explains his platform for his campaign for ward 3 alderman in Annapolis — it includes reimagining public safety, tackling the climate crisis through a city Green Plan, lowering housing costs and increasing housing supply, and so much more.
RI Rep. Leonela Felix argues for creating equity-focused Eviction Moratorium Clinics to better reach communities of color looking for rent relief options.
In NV, Washoe County Commissioner Alexis Hill is now in charge of regional efforts to provide services for the unhoused.
We’re keeping a close eye on the RFS alum running for higher office:
CO Rep. Yadira Caraveo’s congressional campaign is racking up legislative endorsements, including fellow RFS alum Brianna Titone.
In related reading:
Democrats’ failure to win state legislatures directly led to the loss of abortion access in Texas, and soon, in other red states. The cause-and-effect is clear. We made critical mistakes in the past, but we still have time to rectify this for the future.
This thread on the DC protests over the weekend is worth reading; this is the TL;DR.
The (all white) school board in York, PA, banned a list of books and resources, including a kids book about Rosa Parks, all of which are by or about people of color. Heads up that we’ll be getting involved in the election for this board in the near future.
This week on the Run for Something podcast: Dontaye Carter is running for mayor of Sandy Springs, GA, a city just outside Atlanta -- his opponent is the former chair of the Georgia Republican Party. Sandy Springs has changed a lot over the last decade, but its leadership hasn't -- it's time for a new voice. Learn more about Dontaye's campaign at dontayeformayor.com.
We’re able to keep up this momentum because of you. Thanks for being on this team.
- Amanda