Progressive Democrat Issue 36: ELECTIONS 2005: Democracy for America’s A-List

I want to call people's attention to the Democracy for America A-list. This is their list of endorsed candidates for 2005. I would like to go through
the candidates that whose elections have happened and then highlight those
candidates whose elections are still pending.

LeAnna Washington (PA) ran in a May 17 special election for a State Senate seat vacated by successful DFA-endorsed Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz. LeAnna Washington won her special election on May 17th.

Harvey Johnson (MS) was the first African-American mayor of Jackson, Mississippi. Johnson has led the city for 8 years and serves as the president of the National Conference of Black Mayors. Much of his life and talents have been spent expanding economic opportunities for underserved Mississippians. Sadly, Harvey Johnson lost his election in May.

Andres Ramirez (NV) ran for Mayor of North Las Vegas against an incumbent. Andres Ramirez lost his election in June.

Colleen Condon (SC) ran for a Charleston County Council seat that had long been held by Republicans. On Election Day, the Republicans claimed an 18 vote victory. But Colleen Condon discovered that over 200 of her supporters had been left off the voter rolls due to a "clerical error." Republicans tried to seat her opponent on the County Council anyway. But Colleen stood up for voters and took her case to the County and State Election Commission. After months of a prolonged legal battle, the South Carolina Supreme Court supported the County Elections Board and decided that Colleen had the right to a new election. Colleen won this special election (July 16th) by 300 votes, more than the original disputed margin.

Julian Castro (TX) Julian served on the San Antonio City Council, pushing through reforms on ethics and crime while working to attract new jobs to the city. Julian is ran for Mayor of San Antonio, but lost his election in June by less than 4,000 votes.

Donna Frye (CA) knows how to stick to her guns. She won her first race for city council of San Diego, and quickly made a mark with her tenacious commitment to open government and accountability of government spending. But looming problems in the city's pension system—problems she warned about as early as 2002—led to revelations about mismanagement, and ultimately the resignation of the incumbent mayor. Now, Donna is determined to bring fiscal responsibility to the city of San Diego with her honest and effective leadership as mayor. She JUST came out on top of the special election on July 26, but she now faces a runoff election. Help us in supporting this DFA-San Diego endorsed candidate for her runoff election.

So far they have 3 losses, 2 wins (plus a win that needs a runoff). Given the fact that some of their candidates were excellent people but political long shots, that's not too bad. But can we do better?


DFA has a whole slew of candidates coming up for election in the next 4 months. With our help, many of them can make it.

Let's start with Paul Hackett for United States Congress.

CRITICAL: ELECTION IN A MATTER OF DAYS: Paul Hackett for United States Congress. (OH) Paul knows what's at stake for all Americans. As a major in the United States Marine Corp, he voluntarily left Ohio to serve in Iraq. As an opponent of the war, Paul answered the call of duty because he knows that America needs leaders who don't shy from adversity. Now, he is running for Congress in the 2nd congressional district of Ohio fighting to promote small business growth, sustainable environmental policy and fiscal responsibility. Help us give Iraq war veterans their first voice in Congress and bring us a step closer to taking our country back in 2006 and 2008. Support Paul Hackett for United States Congress today. The special election is August 2, 2005. Within the last week, Hackett's campaign has gained HUGE momentum, now having more cash on hand than their opponent. Now is the time to remind Ohio that it was supposed to be blue. A victory here would be a pickup and if we don't pick it up under THESE near perfect circumstances, we never will. PLEASE HELP!! They need to get out the vote and they need our help for that.

Jon Corzine (NJ) has been a member of the United States Senate since 2001. While he could have spent the rest of his political career coasting on his incumbency, he instead has set off in a new direction. To bring his bid for governor closer to the grassroots, Corzine built the 'Corzine Connection' community website and made it the heart of his gubernatorial campaign. The 'Corzine Connection' knocks down barriers to political participation, letting all interested supporters contribute their views and voices to his effort. Corzine's willingness to innovate reflects the same spirit of experimentation that built Democracy for America. This one is kind of personal for me because Karl Rove made his comments about liberals being responsible for 9/11 while campaigning for Corzine's opponant. And now Dick
Cheney is heading to NJ to campaign for his opponant. So I think we need to help Corzine out as much as we can to prevent Rove and Cheney from winning. Join us in supporting Jon Corzine in his bid for Governor of New Jersey. The election is November 8, 2005.

"Running for reform" - Tonya Payne (PA) has taken these words to heart. A
longtime Meetup attendee, she ran against an entrenched Democrat on the City Council-and won this tough primary. Tonya had never run for office before but heeded the call of Democracy for America and ran as a first-time candidate. Running on a platform of reform, with a focus on the economy, Tonya beat the incumbent and is now determined to bring fiscal responsibility to the Pittsburgh City Council. Join us in supporting this DFA-Pittsburgh endorsed candidate in her November election.

Shirley Franklin (GA) marked her successful 2001 bid for mayor of Atlanta with
the slogan, "You make me Mayor and I'll make you proud." Mayor Franklin has certainly lived up to her promise - becoming the first ever African-American female to serve as mayor for a major southern city. She has also battled for a living wage, LGBT rights and fought the city's worst budget crisis since the Great Depression. Mayor Franklin won the Profiles in Courage Award at the Kennedy Library this year and was recently named one of the "5 Best Big-City Mayors in the U.S." by Time Magazine. With your help, we can re-elect Mayor Franklin -- and continue to bring her progressive voice to Atlanta.



The following are facing possible primary challenges so I will not comment
on them, merely present their DFA profile:

Pat Jehlen (MA) has the experience, vision, and determination to stand up for all families of the 2nd Middlesex District. During her fourteen years as a state representative, she has fought for education funding, universal health care, marriage equality and the needs of working people and families. In the wake of State Senator Charlie Shannon's death, Pat Jehlen has vowed to continue the presence of a strong, progressive voice in the Massachusetts State Senate. Jehlen has also received the endorsement of the Cambridge-Area Democracy for America. The primary election is August 30, 2005 and the general election is September 27, 2005.

Gifford Miller (NY) knows how to stand up for what counts. A lifelong New Yorker, Miller was elected to the city council at the young age of 26. Eager to make a difference, he hit the ground running, and focused on issues to make the city more livable: strong schools, better health care, reliable transportation, and living wages for honest work. He was chosen to be the speaker of council in 2002. Join us in supporting this DFA and Democracy for New York City endorsed candidate. The primary election is September 13, 2005 and the general election is November 8, 2005.


Norman Siegel (NY) knows how to stand up for the rights of the people. Since graduating from law school over 35 years ago, Siegel has dedicated his life to defending our most basic freedoms and making sure government works for everyone. He joined the American Civil Liberties Union's Southern Justice & Voter Law project in 1968, and later headed up the Youth Citizen's fund. He has been at the forefront of some of the city's most critical struggles as Executive Director of the New York Civil Liberties Union. He fought for the New York State Equal Rights Amendment and brought better legal services to people in Manhattan's poorest neighborhoods. Now Norman is running for New York City Public Advocate—a city-wide elected office that has the capacity to make government more effective and accountable. Join Democracy for New York City and DFA in supporting Norman Siegel.