John --

Donald Trump is lashing out at us, which can only mean one thing: He's scared.

Many of our movement's greatest victories are connected to our unique efforts to engage disaffected Republicans, Independents, and Democrats to vote in GOP primaries to help defeat extreme anti-democracy candidates who would otherwise easily win. Our novel strategy defeated dozens of them in 2022.

Now, Trump is terrified we will unleash this strategy in the 2024 primaries.

Between selling merchandise with his mugshot, Trump's campaign attacked our efforts to engage non-traditional primary voters who could easily cost him and other MAGA extremists their GOP primary wins.

We're excited to roll-out our complete strategy this Fall, but until then, we have a handful of words for Trump and his team (that have nothing to do with his indictments): You're right to be scared.

And they should be -- not just because we have a plan, but because we have the Reasonable Majority on our side. Thank you for being part of it!

Together,

Country First Team

PS: Check out the Movement Memo below, created for your by Country First volunteers!

See something of interest? All are welcome! Click on the event to register.

COMING UP @ COUNTRY FIRST

August 28 at 8pm ET

- HQ Open Forum

August 29 at 8pm ET

- Political Research Volunteer Working Group

 August 30 at 7pm ET 

- Country First Book Club

August 31 at 8pm ET 

Dash for Democracy Orientation

Each week, Country First highlights a key volunteer who has demonstrated placing Country over Party. If you would like to submit someone who has made a positive impact on your experience with Country First, please email [email protected]. 

MEET BLAKE DEXTER

Where are you from and how long have you been a volunteer for C1? I am from Arlington, Tennessee, and have been a C1 volunteer since June 2023.

What has been your focus at C1? My focus at Country First has been as an intern, creating and compiling information, whether that be through a spreadsheet or vetting public officials in regards to extremist/anti-democratic tendencies. 

What was your motivation for joining C1/how did you hear about us? As a politics/history/current events junkie, I am quite the connoisseur of news on a daily basis. Through tuning in to CNN, I deeply resonated with Congressman Kinzinger's message with his defense of democracy and advocacy against the ways of Trumpism. As a result of this, I continued to research the Congressman's record and what he stood for. This eventually led me to message Country First about Congressman Kinzinger's military service and transition to a political career (as I plan to participate in Air Force ROTC this Fall at the University of Memphis and possibly go into the Air Force, with politics obviously being of interest to me). Country First offered me the awesome opportunity to intern as part of the HQ team, and that was that!

What are your hopes for America in the coming years and generations? My hopes are that we can tune down this divisive rhetoric, bring a form of civility back into politics, expel Trumpism once and for all, while breeding newfound common love for our beautiful democracy. Lastly, I would also like to forge bipartisan collectivity and compromise in an effort to do what is best for our nation. 

Do you think we can right the ship? The magnitude of our upcoming election cannot be understated. The threat to democracy and simple rule of law that Donald Trump poses is unmatched. Already, in just one, short, four year term in office, he has almost irreparably damaged Americans' trust in their democracy, sided with Vladmir Putin over the US intelligence community, threatened to take the US out of NATO, and enabled a insurrection on our nation's most hallowed, sacred grounds, all for the benefit of himself. Consequently, he has been independently rated as one of the worst presidents in US history. However, his appeal to a large group of the American populace is still looming over the nation, due to his uncanny ability to lead his supporters to a false version of the "truth". In this upcoming election, we have the opportunity to oust Trumpism once more -- this time, hopefully, for good. In doing so, we can reinstate a nationwide love for democracy, bring back civility in politics, foster an open and productive dialogue between differing viewpoints and rebuild American democracy brick by brick.

Thank you, Blake, for all of your hard work and dedication to promoting and preserving democracy! 

RANKED CHOICE VOTING

Stateline: As ranked choice voting gains momentum, parties in power push back

Over the past decade, ranked choice voting has become increasingly popular. From conservative Utah to liberal New York City, 13 million American voters in 51 jurisdictions — including all of Alaska and Maine — now use the system, under which voters rank candidates based on preference, leading to an instant runoff in a crowded race. This year, Democrats and Republicans in power pushed back.

GERRYMANDERING

BS19: Alabama congressional map battle now in hands of three-judge panel

The plaintiffs who are challenging Alabama’s congressional map under the Voting Rights Act want a federal three-judge panel to block the legislature-approved map from being used in 2024. And they want the map to be drawn by court-appointed experts. The State of Alabama argues the court should reject the plaintiffs’ arguments and find that the map is constitutionally valid. That would pave the way for the map to be used in the 2024 U.S. House races in Alabama.

STATE OF DEMOCRACY

Washington Post : American democracy is cracking. These forces help explain why.

In a country where the search for common ground is increasingly elusive, many Americans can agree on this: They believe the political system is broken and that it fails to represent them. They aren’t wrong. Faced with big and challenging problems — climate, immigration, inequality, guns, debt and deficits — government and politicians seem incapable of achieving consensus. On each of those issues, the public is split, often bitterly. But on each, there are also areas of agreement. What’s broken is the will of those in power to see past the divisions enough to reach compromise.

WATCH our latest Campfire with New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.

SHOP our Country First baseball cap! 

BRING a friend to one of our events!

Join one of our Volunteer Working Groups! As a grassroots coalition, Country First is dedicated to providing each member with the opportunity to contribute to the success of the movement. National Volunteer Working Groups are separated by interest and are aligned with one of Country First’s key pillars. 

Election Reform

Political Research

Communications 

Mending Divisions