Working for Washington

I hope everyone was able to take a breather after the electrifying Democratic National Convention where we formally nominated the historic Harris-Walz presidential ticket. I still get a thrill every time a news outlet uses a photo from our delegation in their coverage of the national election. As the leader of the Maryland State Senate told me on the final night of the DNC, “Washington state won the convention.” I couldn’t agree more. But right now, the sprint to election day on November 5th is officially ON!

This week, our Coordinated Campaign organizers and volunteers made their 100,000th phone call to voters, urging them to save our democracy by participating in it with their vote. I want to thank every volunteer who has spent their precious time and energy working to make our state a better place to live and thrive. We could not hope to be successful in November without the volunteers who commit themselves to helping our Democratic candidates up and down the ballot.

The State of the Presidential Race 60 Days Out

As excited as we are in this Washington, if we’re going to keep Kamala Harris in charge of our country in the other Washington, we must be clear eyed about where we stand. I wanted to share this update from Harris-Walz Campaign Chair Jen O’Malley Dillon with you all:

“[…] Make no mistake: we head into the final stretch of this race as the clear underdogs. Donald Trump has a motivated base of support, with more support and higher favorability than he has had at any point since 2020. In just a few short days, Vice President Harris will face Trump on the debate stage, where we expect him to be a formidable opponent. In 2020, the election came down to about 40,000 votes across the battleground states. This November, we anticipate margins to be similarly razor-thin.

Vice President Harris is running on a popular agenda that matters to voters at the ballot box. Trump will have to answer for Project 2025. […] Her economic vision is both good for the country and popular with the voters who will decide this election: Vice President Harris’ plans are pragmatic and focused on solutions, while a clear majority of swing voters see Trump as more extreme. 

Since Vice President Harris became the nominee, we have seen tremendous momentum and gains across every battleground. We maintain multiple pathways to 270 electoral votes, and are growing strength across the types of voters who decide elections in every battleground. However, the race remains very close, and will be decided by a small number of undecided voters. That universe of voters does not like Donald Trump, but needs to hear relentlessly from us about Vice President Harris and her vision for the country. That’s what makes our operational strength so critical. 

Heading into the final stretch, our operational strength matters more than ever. Since Vice President Harris entered the race, she’s raised more than $540 million – a historic sum. That money is going directly to a relentless battleground operation, with more than 312 coordinated offices and 2,000 coordinated staff in the states – a reflection of a campaign with presences in every corner of every battleground state and with the communities critical to victory. During a recent Weekend of Action, more than 10,000 volunteers made nearly 900,000 calls and knocked on 150,000 doors, contacting more than 1 million voters.

• In the battlegrounds, we are working to persuade moderate and Republican voters, and cut Trump’s margins in rural areas and red counties. We have offices in rural counties like Washington and Jenkins in Georgia, Union and Jefferson in Pennsylvania, Jackson and Wilson in North Carolina, and Waushara and Rusk in Wisconsin.
• Recently, we launched the Latinos con Harris-Walz WhatsApp channel, a first-of-its-kind effort to reach Latinos on the election in a place where many get their news from.
• Team Harriz-Walz is bolstering its efforts to reach Black voters by continuing to partner with community and faith leaders across battleground states to host  events within the communities that will decide this election – including during the upcoming HBCU homecoming season.
• Last week, we announced a ramp up of efforts on hundreds of college campuses to engage students.
• And just this Tuesday, we will launch our “Fight for Our Reproductive Freedoms” bus tour – an effort that will last until Election Day to drive home the threat Trump poses to women’s reproductive rights.

[…] 

 Bottom line: Make no mistake: the next 60 days will be very hard. This race will remain incredibly close, and the voters who will decide this election will require an extraordinary amount of work to win over. But we have the candidate, message, and operation that brings Americans together to chart a new way forward, so we can once again defeat Donald Trump.

August Primary Finally Over!

It’s official, this August Primary featured the tightest race in Washington state history. After an automatic manual hand recount of every ballot, King County Councilmember Dave Upthegrove will advance to the general election with a 49 vote margin in the election for Public Lands Commissioner. Thanks to the volunteers and voters who cured their ballots, we have ensured that Washington voters will have a choice for Public Lands Commissioner who believes the science on climate change and who will work around the clock to keep our communities safe from wildfire. His opponent, former Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler was the ONLY Washington or Oregon Member of Congress to vote against $100 million for wildfire work. We need every Democrat to unify behind Dave’s campaign so that we can keep science in charge at Washington’s Department of Natural Resources.

Democrats in the News

Highlights of what elected officials and the mass media had to say about Washington at the 2024 Democratic National Convention, The Cascadia Advocate

Lawmakers propose ban on weighted infant sleep products amid growing safety concerns, WOKV U.S. Representative Schrier introducing important child safety legislation for consumer products.

Senator Maria Cantwell visits Colville Reservation, Tribal Tribune

What I’m Listening To

This week I listened to WA Dems Director of Communications Stephen Reed on the Washington Indivisible Podcast as he recapped our time in Chicago at the DNC.

Audio: Apple Podcast | SoundCloud   Video: Facebook | YouTube