The filing deadlines are looming ahead. Some have already passed. Have you been thinking about running for office, but the path to victory is unclear? Why should you even bother if the district is reliably red with an entrenched republican?
You can make a difference by losing. That just doesn’t sound right, does it? We have seen many instances in history where the ongoing work of justice couldn’t be accomplished by one person, but an entire generation of people continued to build on the work of the pioneers and accomplished significant change. We’ve seen armies send soldiers to a battle they can’t win, but it helped to win the war.
As a Democrat running in a red district, you can make a tremendous impact. You can tell your story, and the people who listen can see themselves reflected and represented by you. You can inspire the next person to run and build on the gains your campaign makes. You can force the incumbent to defend their votes, by educating the public about why those votes haven’t been in their best interests. You can force the incumbent and the party to spend money defending a seat they took for granted. You can be the voice of people who don’t have influence or wealth, who aren’t being heard in their struggles. Your story can add the critical amount of democratic turnout to win statewide elections. Also, you might just win.
Andrew Gillum lost the Florida Governor’s race in 2018 by just 1% of the vote. Imagine if YOUR candidacy brought in enough Democratic votes to win a Governor, Senate, or Congressional race. Do you want your candidate to win in your state? Perhaps the best thing you can do for them is to run yourself.
Don’t know what offices you can run for? Check out runforoffice.org to see a list. Once you decide to run, DemCast will help get the word out about your candidacy!
