John,

I’m Congresswoman Maxine Dexter — an Emerge alum, a physician, and now a member of Congress from Oregon.

I can tell you the exact moment I decided to run for office. I was drinking coffee, looking out at Mount Hood, and listening to Dr. Christine Blasey Ford testify during the Kavanaugh hearings.

Three hours later, I called a friend at Emerge Oregon and said: “I want to run for office.”

Emerge was my first step into political life. They trained me, encouraged me, and gave me the confidence and skills to go from an ICU doctor to a lawmaker.

And during the pandemic, while treating COVID patients and watching scientific expertise get dismissed and distorted by the Trump administration, that training grounded me. I knew exactly why I was in the fight and who I was fighting for.

Today, in Congress, I see firsthand how desperately we need more women with real-world experience, science backgrounds, and fierce empathy. Women who recognize disinformation when they see it and refuse to let chaos replace evidence. Women who can stand up to Trump’s attacks on truth and public health.

Emerge helps build those women.

The next class of Emerge candidates — doctors, educators, organizers, mothers — will shape the future of our democracy in 2026. Will you join this moment as a 2026 Founding Donor and help train more women to run and win?

As someone who went from the ICU to Congress because Emerge opened a door, I’m asking you personally: help make that path possible for the next woman who hears a call to serve and decides to answer it.

Thank you for your support,

Rep. Maxine Dexter
Emerge Alum & U.S. Representative (OR-03)