70% of the new House Democrats had never held public office before being elected to Congress
Look at the new House majority if you need more motivation to run for something.
FRANK DALE
DEC 14, 2018, 12:01 PM
The 2016 election was a dire moment for the Democratic Party. As if President Donald Trump‘s stunning win — facilitated by a margin of approximately 75,000 votes in three states — wasn’t bad enough, Democrats were also left with their lowest level of congressional representation in nearly a century.
And at the time of Trump’s inaugural, many of the party’s most prominent leaders were approaching, or already over, 70 years of age: House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is 78, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is 68, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) — who is independent but caucuses with Democrats — is 77, and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is 69.
Experience counts for a lot in Congress, but political careers do not last forever. Even as she awaits the return of the Speaker’s gavel, Pelosi has agreed to step down as Speaker in 2022, should her party remain in power. So in many significant ways, the Democratic Party in Washington has to face decisions about the future of its party and building out a bench with a new generation of leaders.
But in the aftermath of Trump’s win, that bench-building effort got a considerable boost, beginning with a number of groups that sprung up with a similar guiding principle: Encouraging ambitious progressives to make their first run for office. Run For Something, perhaps the most notable example, launched with a focus on “down-ballot races in order to build a bench for the future.”
https://thinkprogress.org/house-democrats-congress-2018-midterm-elections-public-office-donald-trump-run-for-something-9a1579b496a7/
We have got your back....................protect ours...................
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