John,

We’re recruiting our next class of working-class progressive primary candidates to challenge corporate Democrats. It takes a lot of work and resources. And today, I wanted to give you a deeper look at that candidate recruitment work, then ask you to support our efforts.

We do a lot of research into Congressional Districts to find the most strategic places to run progressive primaries. We look for districts with young people, working-class folks, and people of color who would benefit the most from progressive policies like Medicare for All and a Green New Deal.

Our team looks for incumbents in Congress who have taken their constituents for granted. Usually, these incumbents are corporate Democrats comfortable with the status quo who take a lot of money from corporate PACs. We do polling in districts to see how folks will receive a message of progressive change and conduct opposition research on the incumbent.

We go into districts we’ve identified and start talking to local elected officials, union leaders, and activists to find folks who could be the next Justice Democrats. This can be the most exciting part. Sometimes we find folks ready to run for office, and we work with them to see if they’ll be a good fit. Sometimes, we go into a city or town, and the people we speak with all talk glowingly of someone — and the work they do in their communities — who had never thought about running for office before. Then it’s our job to see if they’re the right person for a primary.

After many conversations and some more research, we’re ready to select our candidate and help the new Justice Democrat prepare for their campaign launch. This process takes months, the hard work of several staff members, and the invaluable help of volunteers. All so we can find the next Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Cori Bush, and Jamaal Bowman.

Our team is in the middle of candidate recruitment for 2022 right now, so we can find inspiring working-class candidates to run for Congress on Medicare for All and a Green New Deal. We can only find the best candidates in the most strategic districts with your support. Can you contribute $3 today to fuel our work to find the next Justice Democrats?

Contribute $3

In solidarity,

Ava Benezra
Campaigns Director
Justice Democrats

Do not worry if you cannot afford to make a contribution — we understand that this is a difficult time. If you’re struggling, you can find a food bank here. We appreciate everything you do to keep our movement strong. Please stay informed and follow the most up-to-date recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and your state public health department.