2017 is just the beginning
Just 38 days ago, Virginia elected Democrats from the governor’s mansion to the state legislature — flipping 15 statehouse seats and falling one seat short of a majority. And this week, Democrats shocked the nation again, electing Doug Jones to the United States Senate. This is the first time Alabama has elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1992.
The resistance is real. And it’s flipping seats from red to blue, up and down the ballot, across the country. But it’s just getting started.
Here’s what we learned from 2017 — and how we’ll win even more critical elections in 2018.
The resistance is real — and it’s powered by women, millenials, and black voters.
Ralph Northam won by the largest margin for a Democratic governor in Virginia since 1985, and received the most votes for a governor in the commonwealth’s history. Democrats flipped 15 seats in Virginia’s House of Delegates, far exceeding projections and the most wins in a Virginia state legislative chamber for Democrats since 1899. In Alabama’s senatorial election, Doug Jones received 92% of Hillary Clinton’s vote total in the state— shockingly high turnout for an off-cycle special election. Roy Moore received only 53% of Trump’s votes.
And black Americans, young voters and women are leading this movement. The counties with the highest turnout in Alabama were ones with the highest black populations. Over 9 in 10 black voters supported the Democrat (plus 98% of black women!), and they comprised 29% of the electorate, a higher vote share than in 2008 and 2012 with Barack Obama at the top of the ticket. One estimate found that 36% of Jones’ total votes came from black women alone.
Turnout similarly spiked in counties with colleges, with more than 60% of voters under 30 backing Jones. Eleven of Virginia’s 15 statehouse seats that flipped from red to blue were won by women, and many of the biggest grassroots groups in the commonwealth are run by women. The bottom line: women, millenials and black voters are energized, turning out at record levels, and leading Democrats to win elections.
The resistance is real, and it’s ready to elect Democrats across the country in 2018.
Organizing makes the difference.
In Virginia, over 21,000 volunteers knocked on almost 4 million doors, made more than 3.3 million phone calls, and sent over 1.6 million texts — numbers that set new records for non-presidential races. Alabama saw similarly staggering numbers, with hundreds of thousands doors knocked on in a traditionally deep-red state. The DNC also invested $1 million on turning out black voters and millenials in Alabama. And, in Virginia, their $1.5 million was put directly into organizing and technology.
This surge in organizing is increasing turnout, sometimes making the key difference in counties and local races: Democrats flipped 7 (!) statehouse seats in Virginia by less than 2,000 votes. And, we’re building infrastructure to elect progressive candidates for years to come.
Let’s follow the mantra of the New DNC: Rise and Organize.
Candidates matter.
As a civil rights lawyer who prosecuted and convicted Klansmen, Doug Jones was gaining recognition and support even before the US Senate race made national headlines. Virginia elected three teachers, the commonwealth’s first Latina delegates (two of them!) and first female Asian-American delegate, in addition to a cybersecurity expert, a public defender, and multiple veterans.
Great candidates won — even where it wasn’t expected. And some races were close — or were won — only because great candidates stepped up in places no one thought they could win, like in Alabama.
Democrats are the party for all Americans. We want candidates from our communities, who deeply understand our struggles and our dreams and will fight for fairness and opportunity. If we nominate Democrats of all ages, of all backgrounds, religions and ethnicities, who truly care about improving people’s lives, then those candidates will win in 2018.
We can win anywhere, so let’s run great candidates everywhere.
New technology in the right hands helps us win.
Not only are Democrats united, but we are creating and deploying new technology like never before — especially in down-ballot races where better tech can have an even greater impact and build the foundation for future success.
Volunteers around the country sent more than 1.6 million texts to Virginians to urge them to volunteer and remind them to vote using a new platform called GroundGame, which is funded by a new progressive technology accelerator called Higher Ground Labs.
MobilizeAmerica’s new organizing platform showed volunteers around the country the highest-impact actions they could take for Virginia candidates and allowed them to easily schedule themselves for volunteer shifts. And we’re using historical data and advanced analytics to help inform volunteers of the candidates and opportunities where their help is most needed.
In 2017, Democrats made huge leaps forward, building technology to enable campaigns, grassroots groups, and individuals across the country to collaborate, rather than compete. Continued collaboration will help progressive technology companies have a huge collective impact across hundreds of races in 2018.
Technology is more than apps: it’s about bringing people together.
Elections matter.
While we won elections up and down the ballot, in red states and blue states, what matters next is more important. And thanks to the grassroots energy, new technology, and amazing candidates, we will improve the lives of millions of Americans.
In Virginia, experts say the now-almost-even House of Delegates will likely expand Medicaid, and will be able to focus on increasing the minimum wage, solving local traffic issues, passing gun safety legislation and reforming the criminal justice system. The Democratic governor will preside over the next round of redistricting, a huge step forward in the fight against partisan gerrymandering. And in Alabama, thousands of children may now get their healthcare back with the renewal of CHIP.
When we elect Democrats, good things happen.
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This past month, we showed the nation the power of our grassroots movement, and now we’re ready to move forward and help working families.
But this is just the beginning. Join us now to bring the fight across the nation in 2018 — together, we can move America forward: mobilizeamerica.io/2018
