Progressive Democrat Issue 51: A VICTORY LAP! Urgent campaign in California

There is one race pending that is very important. Remember Ohio’s special election in the 2nd district where Democrat Paul Hackett nearly won in one of the redder districts in Ohio? We have a similar race in a red district in California. Dissatisfaction over Bush’s policies, Arnold’s failures and corruption of Republican Congressman Cunningham from a nearby district has made the Republicans vulnerable in the normally red CA-48 congressional district. Add to this the fact that a really excellent Democrat is running and you have a rare pickup opportunity. Let me tell you about California politics. There are parts of California, like San Diego and Orange Counties, that are about as conservative as you can get. There used to be a Congressman from Orange County named Bob Dornan who makes Bush, Reagan and Cheney look like liberals. Dornan had a “safe” seat during the Reagan era. He rode Reagan’s popularity and the inherent conservative feeling in the district to easy victories. Until dissatisfaction over Republican policies, Clinton’s popularity and changing demographics led to a surprise victory of Democrat Loretta Sanchez over Dornan. Dornan, to his complete horror, lost his safe seat. It has now become a safe seat for Sanchez. Yes, we CAN pick up seats in red districts and hold them if we put our minds to it.

Well, nearby is CA-48, our latest chance. Steve Young is running in CA-48 against a far right-wing Republican and his grassroots campaign has been doing amazingly well. But it is still a difficult race and needs volunteers and donations. We can win this one, but we have to try VERY hard! Please visit Steve Young’s website and volunteer or donate.