John – Last night was a big night not just for Brand New Congress, but for progressive candidates up and down the ballot, all across the country.
It was a tough night for some of our candidates, with hard lessons about our path forward. But there’s also a lot of reason for hope.
First, we are still waiting on final results for Angélica Dueñas and Shervin Aazami. Both races are still counting mail-in ballots and it may be days before we know the final outcome.
Second, we want to say a TREMENDOUS thank you to both Imani Oakley and Tom Winter for their passionate campaigns. While neither of them are advancing to the general election, we are immensely proud of their work, and we know they made an impact.
Both Imani and Tom (and many of our previous candidates) faced incredible obstacles from the party establishment, but they stayed true to their principles and ran clean, grassroots campaigns which focused on the issues that matter to voters.
These conversations matter, John. We reject the argument that there’s “no point” to running in tough races. Brand New Congress has always believed the only path to sustainable, transformative change is to build the relationships and facilitate difficult conversations that take time to manifest.
Everything Imani, Tom, and all BNC candidates pour into their campaigns has an impact on the electorate. Our candidates are changing what people believe is possible, and redefining what they want and expect from their public servants.
That is year-round work that goes far beyond individual elections. If you share our vision for this movement, will you invest in our work with a monthly contribution of any amount? |
The other major barrier that candidates face is money. Grassroots campaigns are getting more expensive to run, and that means working class candidates depend more on partner organizations like ours to support their teams with strategy and volunteer resources.
But the biggest money barrier comes from dark money groups like AIPAC and Opportunity For All – groups who are backing both Pro-Trump Republican candidates and Democratic incumbents.
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These dark money groups spread false claims about our candidates to smear their reputations and misrepresent their policies. Their blatant scare tactics are often successful, because grassroots candidates and organizations like ours don’t have millions of dollars to fight back.
But when elections are close – the way many progressive races this year have been – every little bit helps.
Brand New Congress has the experience needed to combat these dirty tactics and help our candidates succeed, but we need the resources to back it up and carry it out.
Will you invest in this vital infrastructure to give our candidates – now and in the future – the best possible chance of success? |
