Jack,
Democrats flipped the House in 2018 because of the brave women—many in red and purple districts—who stepped up to run for Congress.
Kirsten and Off the Sidelines supported over 90% of the women House candidates who won back in 2018. We’ll be there for them again this year—along with the new faces running to expand our majority. We’ve endorsed over 50 incumbent congresswomen and another 31 challengers this cycle. It’s a phenomenal group of women—comprised of veterans, educators, first-time candidates, health care professionals, civic leaders, activists and more.
Today, I wanted to share updates on a few of their races to show you how Off the Sidelines is helping them build momentum on the ground.
I hope you’ll take a look, then consider making your first contribution to Off the Sidelines today. We’ll immediately put your donation to work in battleground races across the country, helping to educate, mobilize and turn out voters.
Thank you,
Stefanie
Our newest endorsements
Off the Sidelines is thrilled to be endorsing three new House challengers this month—each running in districts long-considered strictly Republican territory. But now, thanks to changing demographics and amazing candidates, these seats are in play.
Diane Mitsch Bush (CO-03)
Diane is a former tenured professor, county commissioner and Colorado state representative running in Colorado’s third congressional district. CO-03 is a large, rural, and historically red seat that’s grown increasingly competitive in recent years.
Diane’s opponent is Lauren Boebert—a far-right, Trump-loving conspiracy theorist who defeated incumbent Rep. Scott Tipton in the GOP’s June primary. Boebert is the owner of Shooter’s Grill, a restaurant whose claim to fame is that all of its servers openly carry loaded guns—while on the job.
Boebert’s upset over Rep. Tipton, and her extreme views, mean Democrats have an excellent shot at flipping CO-03. Split a donation between Diane’s campaign and Off the Sidelines.
Lulu Seikaly (TX-03)
Lulu is a proud first-generation American whose parents fled Lebanon’s civil war in search of a better life. Inspired by the trailblazing women who ran for office in 2018—particularly women of color—Lulu decided to run for office herself. TX-03 covers much of Collin County, just north of Dallas, includes the cities of Plano, Frisco and McKinney.
Earlier this month, Lulu won her runoff election for the Democratic nomination. Now, she’s challenging GOP Rep. Van Taylor, who votes with Trump over 95% of the time.
This is one of the seats Democrats are going to need to flip if we’re going to turn Texas blue. And the Dallas Morning News thinks it’s possible: “Play close attention District 3, where Republican incumbent Van Taylor is being challenged by political newcomer Lulu Seikaly. TX-03 is in transition, much like neighboring District 32 in Dallas County had been for several election cycles." Help Lulu flip this seat. Split a donation between Lulu’s campaign and Off the Sidelines.
Candace Valenzuela (TX-24)
After winning her runoff earlier this month, Candace Valenzuela could be the first Afro-Latina elected to Congress. A community leader, educator and lifelong Texan, Candace is intimately aware of the struggles so many Texas families face: As a young girl, she experienced homelessness, and was the first in her family to earn a college degree.
Candace also knows a thing or two about beating the odds: In 2017, she defeated an 18-year incumbent in the race for her local school board.
Candace is running to replace retiring GOP Rep. Kenny Marchant, who won reelection in 2018 by just three points, despite outspending his opponent. With an open seat, we have a real opportunity to win this race and expand our House majority. Split a donation between Candace’s campaign and Off the Sidelines.
In the news
Our Off the Sidelines candidates have been making waves! Check out the latest from Rep. Elissa Slotkin (MI-08), Rep. Lauren Underwood (IL-14), and Desiree Tims (OH-10).
POLITICO profiles Rep. Elissa Slotkin | “I believe that voters in my state and in my district still care about having elected officials with integrity, even if they don’t agree with them.”
New York Magazine profiles Rep. Lauren Underwood | “We’re never going to have [an economic recovery] if women can’t return to the workforce. We will not have a full and swift economic recovery without addressing core needs around paid sick leave, paid family leave, and affordable childcare.”
Buzzfeed News profiles Desiree Tims | “We all want access to the American dream. And that is the best language that I can speak: opportunity. So people definitely are taking a look—Can this little Black girl from West Dayton do it? And the answer is, I've already done it.”
A call for support
We took back the House in 2018 thanks to women running in red and purple places. This year, with President Trump on the ballot, many of these seats are at risk of falling back into Republican hands. In fact, two of our freshman congresswomen were outraised by their opponents last quarter, which makes them uniquely vulnerable.
Rep. Angie Craig (MN-02) is the first openly LGBTQ person elected to the U.S. House from Minnesota and has been a champion for Minnesota’s working families while serving in the House. (She also happens to be one of Kirsten’s teammates on the Congressional Women’s Softball Team).
Rep. Abby Finkenauer (IA-01) became one of the youngest women ever elected to Congress when she flipped her seat from red to blue in 2018. A product of Iowa’s public schools (who is still paying off her student loans), Abby understands firsthand the importance of expanding educational opportunity.
If you’re able, consider splitting a donation between Reps. Angie Craig and Abby Finkenauer and Off the Sidelines to help them pull ahead and expand our House majority.
Paid for by Gillibrand for Senate
Contributions or gifts to Off the Sidelines PAC are not tax-deductible. Off the Sidelines PAC does not accept contributions from federal lobbyists, corporate and/or trade association PACs, or "for profit" business entities, including but not limited to sole proprietorships, partnerships, and LLCs.
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