Dear John,

While we wait to hear about a couple races still too close to call, we can start to reflect on the 2022 primary. Here are five initial lessons we are taking from this race. (We hope you’ll tune in on May 24th for our WV Can’t Wait Statewide Zoom, so we can dig a little deeper. RSVP here.)

1. We can win… if we stick together and do the work. Some of our biggest victories of the primary came in Charleston, where we had the most candidates running together – sharing volunteers, press events, and mailers. Beyond the Capitol, we saw first-time winners like Ryan Deems (Harrison County Delegate), Seth King (Putnam County Delegate), Tony Martin (Raleigh County Delegate), and Carmen Taylor-Bratton (Jefferson County School Board) win difficult primaries by simply outworking their opponents. There’s no substitute for one-on-one, direct voter contact. Chelsea Steelhammer essentially walked her entire Ward, and then did it again, to beat an incumbent for city council.

2. Candidates taking bold stances on populist, working class issues makes a difference. On election day, the Charleston Can’t Wait crew gathered more than 200 signatures for a cannabis decriminalization petition and voters walked into the polls with slate cards in their hands, just to vote for candidates who support cannabis access. After the Roe draft was leaked, Ryan Deems texted his constituents about his support for abortion access. He beat an incumbent by a small margin--not in spite of his stance, but because of it. Candidates who give constituents something to vote for have a much better shot.

3. Winning doesn’t always mean getting more votes on election day. This election will be measured by the 31 out of 58 WV Can’t Wait candidates who advanced to the general. But that’s only half the story. We will also measure this race by the canned food drive that Cabell School Board candidate Lauren Hensley ran, by the Naloxone mailer organized by Joe Solomon, and by the brave public stances taken by candidates like Darrin Cox (Ohio School Board), Michele Merrill (Summers School Board), and Steve McClure (Jackson County Commission). Perhaps most of all, we will feel the results of this election in the new skills and experiences gained by dozens of working class West Virginians who put their name on the ballots for the first time and are already looking for the next fight to pick. Our movement is stronger because of their courage.

4. The WV Can’t Wait endorsement helps. We heard most from candidates this election cycle was that our endorsement helped them and was essential to their belief that they could run at all. This year, we offered candidates: a personalized webpage, a professional headshot, 1,000 personalized door cards, a text-banking program, on-going trainings, 20+ how-to guides, and up to 30 hours of free consultation with our field, finance, and communications staff. Each election cycle, we are getting closer and closer to our goal of becoming a true political machine for the folks who can’t just buy one.

5. Elections are one tool. They are not the only tool. Across the state, our Hometown Heroes, Organizer Apprentices, and Citizen Media Makers were out doing the work that government routinely fails to do. Wage workers all over West Virginia are strategizing about how to organize their workplaces. We know elections are rigged and messy. They're one tool, but not the only one. No matter who you are, we want to help you find a way to make change in our great state.

What were your lessons from the election?

We know we have folks who are feeling hopeful, and folks who are feeling defeated. This work ain’t easy. Drop us a line anytime if you want to talk ([email protected], [email protected]).

Can’t wait to hear from you (and see you on the 24th!),

Stephen & Katey

WV Can't Wait is a movement to win a people's government in the Mountain State. For more information, visit wvcantwait.com.