2018 Congressional Elections
We need to organize in a way that we have never organized before. ~Bernie Sanders, Senator from Vermont
The 2018 midterm elections are the best chance progressives have to gain power in our government. At a national level, the Senate map heavily favors Republicans in the 2018 midterm elections, and it is unlikely that progressives will be able to regain power in that chamber. However, to regain control of the House, progressives will need to focus on a handful of swing seats.
The US House of Representatives has 435 seats. Currently, 241 are held by Republicans and 194 by Democrats. Swing Left, a grassroots political action group founded by progressive citizens, has identified 52 of these seats to be competitive. Seventeen of these swing seats are currently held by Democrats, which means that to regain a majority, progressives will need to keep all of these and turn an additional 24 swing seats currently held by Republicans.
At the state level, all states except Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Virginia (which do not hold elections in even-numbered years) will hold elections of some sort. Twenty-nine states use a staggered system, and therefore will hold elections for only some state Senators and Representatives. Additionally, there will be elections for governorships in 36 US states and three US territories. Because Democrats have lost more than 900 seats in state legislatures and 11 governorships over the last eight years, state level elections are more important now than ever before.
Action: At the national level, visit SwingLeft.org to find your closest swing seat in the US House of Representatives and support the progressive candidate.
Action: At the state level, identify and support progressive candidates at all levels of government, from school boards to city councilmembers, to state Representatives, Senators, and Governors.
Action: Run for office.
Redistricting has made a tiny slice of ideological activists the power brokers in who gets sent to Congress. ~Reuters, July 21, 2011
Since 2008, Democrats have lost more than 900 seats in state legislatures across the country and an additional 11 governorships, 13 U.S. Senate seats, and 69 House seats. Independent research by the Harvard Political Review indicates that these losses are not simply the will of the people, but are related to Republican majorities in state legislatures redrawing the boundaries of their districts to ensure future victories even if they garner fewer votes – a process known as gerrymandering.
Although gerrymandering is prevalent in many states, Republicans have been particularly aggressive in vital swing states like Michigan and North Carolina. In fact, when it comes to unfair districting practices, the Electoral Integrity Project confirms that North Carolina, a state with a large military community, ranks below Venezuela and Iran as the worst entity in the world ever analyzed by the project.
Gerrymandering contributes to a range of democratic problems including the disenfranchisement of minority and low-income voters, low-voter turnout, and a polarized Congress.
Action: Learn about your own districts by visiting Redistricting the Nation.
Action: Follow the work of The Brennan Center for Justice.
Action: Please ask your US Representative to co-sponsor the John Tanner Fairness and Independence in Redistricting Act (H.R. 278).
Special Interest Money
In a time of polarized politics, there’s one thing that ninety percent of Americans agree on. That our government is broken and broken because of the money in politics. ~Harvard Law Professor Lawrence Lessig
Special interest money in politics has always had a corrupting effect. However, when the Supreme Court passed Citizen’s United and a lower court passed the lesser-known Speechnow.org case, the US judiciary opened the floodgates of special interest money into politics in the form of Super PACs.
The campaign finance system is now so unbalanced that members of the US House and Senate spend between 30% and 70% of their time wooing big money donors. Not only does this mean that they have less time to hear the concerns of their constituents, it means that the biggest donors now have unprecedented influence over passing legislation.
These donors are able to reshape the American economy for their benefit, and in consequence, America is now considered an Oligarchy in many circles. Although the current administration has said that they are in favor of campaign finance reform, their plan does not go far enough to reestablish representative democracy in America.
Action: Support political candidates in the upcoming 2018 elections who are not funded by special interest money and have vowed to make campaign finance a top priority. Learn more at Mayday.us.
Action: Help pass the non-partisan Free and Fair Elections Resolution in your state.