Contest Every Race, a national project to make sure every Republican is challenged, has successfully completed a month-long candidate recruitment drive with grassroots partners in 23 states ahead of major filing deadlines. Candidates recruited include 5 Mohave Board of Supervisor candidates who are running against previously unopposed MAGA extremists who are on the Election Threat and Insurrectionist Index.
Recent recruitment events are part of a national campaign to mobilize 53,000 voters in non-urban areas of Presidential and Senate battleground states by fielding nearly 1,000 Democrats for local office where they previously left races unopposed. Contest every Race aims to leverage the “reverse coattails” effect, where local candidates generate local enthusiasm, expand the electorate, and increase neighbor-to-neighbor conversations, resulting in additional votes at the top of the ticket for President Biden from low propensity voters who currently feel disengaged and unseen by national Democrats.
Through the month of February, Contest Every Race grantees facilitated over 90 distinct candidate recruitment events across the country, resulting in 363 candidates recruited to run for office. The recruitment events took place in 23 states, including the battleground states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Georgia, Nevada, Arizona, and Ohio. In addition to mass candidate recruitment events, over 100 one-on-one conversations were held across participating counties as a way to connect people interested in running for office with a member of the local Dems, who was equipped to answer questions the prospective candidates had about taking the leap of running for office.
Nationally, Contest Every Race has engaged with over 70,000 Democrats about running for office in 2024, and since its inception in 2018, has recruited over 7,000 Democrats to successfully run for local office across the country. Contest Every Race recruits Democrats to run for office primarily in non-urban areas by using targeted text messages, digital ads, email, and funding local recruitment events.
Interviews available upon request with organizers of the grants program as well as candidates running for office in the following states: Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. For more information and to schedule an interview contact Daniel Jubelirer, daniel@movementlabs.com, 919-619-5795.
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Contest Every Race, a project of Movement Labs, recruits Democrats to run in otherwise uncontested local races, and operates a national rural organizing support program to net votes for Democrats in the 2024 election.
