As I reflect on the eve of the big day, I can’t help but think of how far we’ve come together.

We founded Arena four years ago in response to the devastating results from the 2016 election. We started with a convening, dubbed “Arena Summit,” just weeks after that election and quickly grew an organization to support visionary candidates and train thousands of new and diverse democratic staffers. And as the years after 2016 took shape, people like you took on leadership roles, took risks, and inspired others. Through this work, together, we’ve played a critical role in winning elections up and down the ballot.

As part of this effort to build a robust progressive talent pipeline, we’ve:

Trained more than 5,277 aspiring campaign staffers and volunteers.
Graduated 1,102 people from Arena Academy, 60% of whom are women and 53% of whom are people of color.
Matched training graduates with 483 jobs on campaigns and progressive organizations around the country.
Supported more than 31 successful candidates to victory through Arena Fellowship in 2017 and 2018, 67% of whom are women and 48% of whom are people of color.
Helped lead the efforts to flip the U.S. House of Representatives in 2018, New York State Senate in 2018, and the Virginia House of Delegates in 2017.
And built innovative training and talent solutions for campaigns at scale through Arena Toolbox and Arena Careers.

Of course, defeating Donald Trump has always been a central part of our mission. That’s why we partnered with Organizing Together 2020 to train the organizing staff needed to defeat Donald Trump and his agenda. It’s also why we also partnered with the Democratic Party of Wisconsin and the Biden campaign to host Campaign Academy 2020, a first of its kind volunteer training at the Democratic National Convention, which helped on-board more than 4,000 volunteers for the final stretch of the campaign, 30% of whom were new to politics.

But we didn’t just stop at the top of the ticket. We teamed up with Future Now Fund to flip state legislatures in five battleground states, including Arizona, Florida, Michigan, North Carolina, and Texas. We ultimately raised $7.5 million to fund high-impact tactics and placed many of our Academy graduates on campaigns in these states. As you watch the Presidential returns tomorrow night, keep an eye out for these critical state legislative races that will shape policy and redistricting in the years to come.

We did this together. Brick-by-brick, we built the infrastructure, put in the work, and took nothing for granted. So, when the returns come in tomorrow, I will be thinking about you.

One last thing. If you or anyone you know hasn’t voted yet, there’s still time. Head to iwillvote.com to find out where to drop your ballot or how to vote on Election Day. You can register to vote on Election Day in 22 states and this is a reliable voter protection hotline.

Thank you.

Ravi Gupta

Arena Co-Founder