To Turn Election Wins Into Policy, House Progressives Need More Committee Power Zephyr Teachout Dec 04, 2020
Two Rising Democratic Stars May Be Vying for Pennsylvania Governor. On Criminal Justice, They’re Very Different Joshua Vaughn Nov 24, 2020
In a Blow to the Progressive Prosecutor Movement, Allister Adel Wins the Maricopa County Attorney Race Meg O'Connor Nov 11, 2020
Carroll Fife’s Fight For Unhoused Mothers Sparked A Movement Across The Country. Now She’s On The Oakland City Council Ready To Transform The City. Eoin Higgins Nov 09, 2020
George Gascón Wins Race for Los Angeles D.A. in Major Victory for Progressive Prosecutor Movement Eliyahu Kamisher
Michigan Supreme Court Flips to Democrats The ideological change is a boon for the left, as states prepare for redistricting in 2021 and the challenges that may come with it. Joshua Vaughn | November 6, 2020
Holly Mitchell Wins Supervisors Race With Big Implications For Criminal Justice Reform In Los Angeles County The LA County supervisors are poised to tackle a wide range of criminal justice reforms, including moving children and people struggling with mental health issues out of the criminal legal system, and redirecting millions of dollars away from law enforcement and back into communities. Piper French | November 5, 2020
San Francisco Voters Abolish Mandatory Staffing Levels for Police Current law mandated that the city have at least 1,971 full-time police officers. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg | November 4, 2020
Mondaire Jones Is Bringing the Fight Against Systemic Racism to Congress Jones has vowed to support expansion of the Supreme Court, back the Green New Deal, and push for criminal justice reform. Lauren Gill | November 4, 2020
Francesca Hong Wins A Seat In The Wisconsin Legislature. She’s Fighting For A Living Wage And Workers’ Rights. The chef and restaurant owner says she plans to support the fight for a $15 minimum wage and other reforms that will make ‘Wisconsin work better for more people.’ Dawn R. Wolfe | November 4, 2020
Esther Agbaje, Fighting For Affordable Housing And Prison Reform, Becomes Minnesota’s First Nigerian-American Legislator “I have always had a focus on public service, always a desire to make sure that I’m using my skills and talents to help people and to make the community around me a little bit better,” she said. Dawn R. Wolfe | November 4, 2020
Athena Hollins Wins Seat In Minnesota State House, Pledging To Fight For Broad Police Reforms Hollins’s ‘very personal’ decision to run was sparked in part by the Trump administration ‘catching everything on fire.’ Now she wants to advocate for subsidized child care, police reform, and more. Dawn R. Wolfe | November 4, 2020
Reformer Ed Gonzalez Wins Second Term As Harris County Sheriff Houston area voters re-elected Gonzalez after he supported bail reform, cleaned up the county jail, and provided aid to incarcerated people living with opioid use disorder. Jerry Iannelli | November 4, 2020
California Voters Reject Regressive Measure That Would Have Rolled Back Years Of Successful Criminal Justice Reforms The ballot initiative would have bloated prisons and jails in the state and undone important criminal legal reforms, advocates say. Ray Levy Uyeda | November 4, 2020
‘The Squad’ Is Growing—And So Is Its Power Members of The Squad are already among the Democratic Party’s most influential voices. Jay Willis | November 4, 2020
Tarra Simmons Becomes First Person Formerly Convicted Of A Felony Elected To Washington State Legislature Simmons, an attorney, is fighting to give people “a first chance so they won’t need a second chance later on in life.” Eoin Higgins | November 4, 2020
Omar Fateh Wins Chance to Bring ‘People Power’ to Minnesota’s State Senate Minnesotans, Fateh said, “should be able to access the folks that are representing us and make sure that they’re partnering with the community.” Dawn R. Wolfe | November 4, 2020
Teresa Leger Fernandez Wins In New Mexico’s Third Congressional District. She’s Fighting For ‘A Politics Of Opportunity.’ Leger Fernandez wants to pass universal healthcare and improve infrastructure in tribal and rural communities. Lauren Gill | November 3, 2020
Marie Newman Wins Illinois House Seat, Pledging To Fight For Working Families And The Middle Class “This economy doesn’t work for everyone; it works for very, very few people,” Newman said. Cinnamon Janzer | November 3, 2020
Jamaal Bowman Is Headed To Congress, Pledges To Make Democrats ‘The Party Of Dismantling Mass Incarceration’ Bowman has also advocated for an eviction moratorium and for rental payments to be cancelled for the duration of the pandemic. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg | November 3, 2020
Cori Bush Wins, Heads To Congress Committed To ‘Fighting For The Regular Person’ Bush’s victory in Missouri’s First Congressional District makes her the first Black woman elected to represent Missouri in Congress. Lauren Gill | November 3, 2020
It’s Time To Lower The Voting Age To 16 Grown adults have voted their way into the current morass in this country. Now is the time for a younger generation to lead the way. David A. Love | November 3, 2020
A Clash of Housing Philosophies Is At The Heart of a High-Profile California State Senate Race First-time state Senate candidate Jackie Fielder’s housing plans are geared toward government investment, while incumbent Scott Wiener’s plans have relied on the construction of market rate housing with some affordable units. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg | November 3, 2020
The Senate Filibuster Is Hollowing Out American Democracy If Democrats win control of the Senate, allowing this archaic tradition to survive will make everything of significance the party hopes to accomplish virtually impossible. Jay Willis | November 2, 2020
Lorenzo Sanchez Wants to Provide Healthcare to Uninsured Texans Sanchez is running for one of the state House seats that Democrats are hoping to flip. Meg O'Connor | November 2, 2020
Armed Michigan Protesters Fueled Jon Hoadley’s Commitment To Run For Congress If he wins his bid to represent the state’s Sixth District, Hoadley says he would reallocate police funding, improve health care, and invest in rural communities. Dawn R. Wolfe | November 2, 2020
Kara Eastman Looks to Represent Nebraska in Congress With An Eye On Improving Healthcare The Second District candidate, who has been endorsed by more than 50 Black leaders in Omaha, also wants to make investments in Black and Latinx neighborhoods. Lauren Gill | October 30, 2020
Texas House Candidate Celina Montoya Is Running To Expand Medicaid and Fund Public Education She is running for a historically Republican-controlled seat, and if she wins, it could help turn the state House blue. Meg O'Connor | October 30, 2020
Candace Valenzuela Is Running to Give All People a Chance at the American Dream If she’s successful in her bid to represent Texas’s 24th Congressional District, Valenzuela will flip the district to blue and become the first Black and Latinx member of Congress. Joshua Vaughn | October 30, 2020
Francesca Hong Wants ‘Wisconsin to Work Better for More People’ The chef and restaurant owner is running for State Assembly in part to fight for a $15 minimum wage and other pro-worker reforms from within the halls of government. Dawn R. Wolfe | October 30, 2020
Democratic Candidate Brandy Chambers Wants to Help Turn the Texas House Blue If Chambers can unseat the Republican incumbent in her district, she said she’ll prioritize expanding Medicaid, improving public education funding, and lowering property taxes. Meg O'Connor | October 29, 2020
What Raquel Terán Wants To Accomplish If Democrats Take The Arizona State Legislature The state representative wants to pass paid family leave, repeal Arizona’s pre-Roe vs. Wade abortion ban, and increase access to the ballot through automatic voter registration and same-day registration. Meg O'Connor | October 29, 2020
This California Teacher Wants Environmental Justice Fatima Iqbal-Zubair, who seeks to represent South Central Los Angeles in the State Assembly, wants 'clean air, clean water, and clean food' for her constituents. Jerry Iannelli | October 29, 2020
3 Transformational Candidates That the Working Families Party Is Excited About The party's national director tells The Appeal about candidates in New York, Washington, D.C., and New Mexico that the WFP would like to see oust the establishment. Joshua Vaughn | October 28, 2020
In Her First Run For Office, Teresa Leger Fernandez Wants To ‘Protect What We Love’ About New Mexico Leger Fernandez, whose district includes Navajo Nation and several Pueblo reservations, wants to pass universal healthcare and improve infrastructure in tribal and rural communities. Lauren Gill | October 28, 2020
In California Rent Control Battle, Controversies Swirl Around Funders on Both Sides Corporate backers of a group opposed to Proposition 21 don’t match the protective image it portrays. And a nonprofit that has contributed to supporters has been accused of financial improprieties. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg | October 28, 2020
For Illinois Democrat Marie Newman, Progressive Is ‘Practical’ Newman, who is running for a U.S. House seat, wants Medicare for all, green jobs, and a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. Cinnamon Janzer | October 27, 2020
Raph Graybill Is Running To Be A Better Attorney General For Montana Graybill’s experience with suing the state’s current AG, Tim Fox, to protect a land easement program “really pushed me over the edge,” he told The Appeal. Dawn R. Wolfe | October 27, 2020
As Arizona Politics Shift, Martín Quezada Hopes This Term Is His Most Significant Quezada has supported progressive policies since starting out in the state legislature in 2012. He’s now running for his final term, which could be his most important, given the state’s changing power dynamics. Meg O'Connor | October 27, 2020
How Julie Oliver’s Personal Experiences With Healthcare And Housing Have Influenced Her Run For Congress ‘Our Congress should be reflective of the people here, and it’s not,’ the Texas resident said. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg | October 27, 2020
Omar Fateh is Running to Bring a ‘Working-Class Agenda’ to Minnesota’s State Senate The current Democratic state senator, Jeff Hayden, lacks the progressive vision that Minnesotans seek, Fateh says. Dawn R. Wolfe | October 26, 2020
Teens Younger Than 18 Could Soon Have The Right To Vote In San Francisco A measure on the ballot next month would allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote, a change that advocates say would crucially expand the voting pool. Lauren Gill | October 23, 2020
How One Race Could Change Police Accountability in Arizona Incumbent Maricopa County Attorney Allister Adel is backed by police unions and has declined to charge officers in high-profile killings. Challenger Julie Gunnigle says she wants to create an independent unit to review police use-of-force cases. Meg O'Connor | October 23, 2020
Michigan Lifers Are Organizing Their Families to Vote The Adolescent Redemption Project, a new group organized by Michigan prisoners sentenced to life without the possibility of parole, is advocating for progressive prosecutors. Marcia Brown | October 22, 2020
In Effort to Slow Climate Change, Texas Democrat Seeks Seat On Oil Regulation Board Chrysta Castañeda wants to use the state Railroad Commission’s powers to stop energy companies from engaging in environmentally harmful practices like burning excess gas. Jerry Iannelli | October 22, 2020
‘Democracy Pressure-Tested’: Voter Suppression Efforts Underway As Election Nears Efforts by elected leaders in several states are making it harder to get to the polls and fomenting misinformation about the election amid a pandemic. Joshua Vaughn | October 21, 2020
This Los Angeles County Election Could Have A Big Effect On Criminal Justice Reform The Board of Supervisors wields enormous power over a county government apparatus that includes the DA’s office, probation department, and sheriffs. Piper French | October 21, 2020
Black Voters Matter Co-Founder Says Voting Enthusiasm Is Strong Despite Rampant Suppression The group is seeing real challenges posed by the pandemic, voter suppression tactics, and threats of intimidation. Kira Lerner | October 20, 2020
Tarra Simmons, Candidate for Washington State Legislature, Is Fighting To Give People A First Chance The attorney, who is a person formerly convicted of a felony, has attracted support and praise from people around the country. Eoin Higgins | October 20, 2020
Cori Bush Wants To Make Sure That Someone Is ‘Fighting For The Regular Person’ In Washington If she wins her bid for office in November, Bush will become the first Black woman elected to represent Missouri in Congress. Lauren Gill | October 19, 2020
Esther Agbaje Wants to Solve ‘The Million Dollar Question’ of Racial Disparities Across Minnesota If she wins at the ballot box in November, Agbaje would become the state’s first Nigerian American state legislator. Dawn R. Wolfe | October 16, 2020
Reform Advocates Want To Oust Illinois Judge Who Fought To Detain Young Children A coalition of organizations is hoping Michael Toomin, who is also unwilling to implement diversion programs, loses his retention election. Kira Lerner | October 16, 2020
Athena Hollins Takes On Public Safety, Housing, And Affordable Child Care In Her Run For The Minnesota House When it comes to public safety, Hollins doesn’t want to stop with reallocating police funding. She’d like her state to track both proven and alleged instances of police misconduct. Dawn R. Wolfe | October 16, 2020
Tenant Organizers Are Running To Keep New Yorkers In Their Homes After defeating long-time incumbents in Democratic primaries, progressive candidates are championing cancelling rent and banning evictions. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg | October 15, 2020
From Criminal Justice Reform To Protecting The Democracy, Mondaire Jones Wants To Bring ‘Big Structural Changes’ To Congress Jones, who is running in New York’s 17th District, says fighting systemic racism and hyperpartisanship are top priorities. Lauren Gill | October 14, 2020
Election Night Coverage Is Broken. In 2020, It Could Be Dangerous In a presidential election likely to take weeks or months to decide, the race to name a winner on Nov. 3 could do tremendous damage to the integrity of the vote-counting process. Jay Willis | October 14, 2020
Sara Innamorato Is Fighting to Reduce the Harms of COVID-19’s Economic Crush The state representative wants to bar landlords in Pennsylvania from reporting missed or late rent payments to credit agencies. Joshua Vaughn | October 13, 2020
Democrats Could Break the Republican Trifecta in Arizona The party needs to win two state House seats and three state Senate seats in next month’s election to flip the chambers. Here are the candidates running in hotly contested races. Meg O'Connor | October 13, 2020
Los Angeles D.A. Candidates Spar on Police Shootings, Death Penalty DA Jackie Lacey and challenger George Gascón outlined diverging visions for the top prosecutor’s office in the nation’s most populous county. Kira Lerner | October 9, 2020
California’s Proposition 20 Would Roll Back Years of Criminal Justice Reform The ballot initiative, supported by police, corporations, and even big grocery chains, would use more taxpayer money to incarcerate people, rather than invest in other social services. Ray Levy Uyeda | October 8, 2020
As More States Turn To Mail-In Voting, Problems Pop Up Across Country Last week’s problems in New York were part of a widespread series of issues, both systemic and targeted, that are only now becoming fully apparent, activists say. Eoin Higgins | October 8, 2020
Portland Civil Rights Activists Want A Mayor Who Can Stand Up To Police Mayor Ted Wheeler’s popularity has declined after a summer of protests against police violence in the Oregon city. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg | October 7, 2020
California Voters Have An Opportunity To Chip Away At Jim Crow-Era Voting Law Proposition 17 would allow people with felony convictions to cast ballots while they are on parole. Kira Lerner | October 6, 2020
Maricopa County’s Top Prosecutor Releases Misleading Attack Ad Allister Adel paints herself as a reformer, but her record shows otherwise. Meg O'Connor | October 5, 2020
Another Way Chaos Could Erupt on Election Day: Delayed Absentee Ballot Processing Although some GOP election officials have moved to allow mail-in ballots to be counted early, outdated rules in other key Republican-led states could feed President Trump’s Election Day fearmongering. Spenser Mestel | October 2, 2020
Carroll Fife Is Fighting To Make Oakland Safer And More Equitable For Everyone In her run for City Council, Fife pushes back on the institutional barriers to Black people that come from a history of oppression. Eoin Higgins | October 1, 2020
Joe Biden Should Use Federal Dollars to Fund Alternatives to Police If he becomes president and Democrats win the Senate, Biden should push a federal spending bill that includes money for civilian first-responder programs. Aaron Stagoff-Belfort | October 1, 2020
California Prison Guard Union Responsible for ‘Bullseye’ Ad Donates $1 Million to Jackie Lacey’s Re-election Campaign Late-stage donations to the Los Angeles DA race increase concerns about the influence of law enforcement money on politics. Piper French | September 24, 2020
Tiffany Cabán: Why I Am Running For New York City Council In the face of a pandemic and police violence, elected leaders have failed to keep us safe and to champion the voices of marginalized communities like mine. Now it is time to determine our own future. Tiffany Cabán | September 23, 2020
