Democratic state legislative candidates running in 10 competitive races that are critical to safeguarding our democracy
State legislatures are the foundations of our democracy and Democratic lawmakers are standing up to attacks on voting rights across the country. These 10 candidates are running in races where democracy is on the line – including against Republican candidates who supported Trump’s lies in the lead up to the January 6th insurrection and who have led the assault on our democratic institutions and ballot access.
Ever since Joe Biden won Arizona in 2020, Republican state legislators have been working to pass a bill empowering them to override the popular vote so that they can select presidential electors themselves. Now, Democrats are only two seats away from flipping the House and Senate – making Arizona one of the most winnable GOP-controlled battlegrounds in the country. Former teacher and current state House member, Rep. Judy Schwiebert, is running in a highly competitive race for the Arizona Senate – the exact campaign we need to support to elect a democracy-defending Democratic majority in the Grand Canyon State.
Sen. Christine Marsh is another candidate running in a competitive race to defeat the extremist GOP majority in Arizona’s Senate. As Arizona’s 2016 Teacher of the Year, Christine has made it her mission to advocate for public schools, fighting for legislation that will have long-term benefits for students and their families – not quick profits for partisan lawmakers. She’s also standing up to protect voting rights, health care access, and reproductive freedom.
In a legislature filled with election-denying extremists, Rep. Seth Blattman has been committed to bringing down the temperature to make real progress to improve life for his constituents. Seth has sponsored a slate of bills designed to protect voting rights and the democratic process, and he’s pushed for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. He also understands that Arizona’s restrictions on reproductive care go against the will of the people, and is working to restore access to abortion.
Ashwin Ramaswami is running for the Georgia Senate against Republican incumbent Sen. Shawn Still – the only sitting elected official who has been indicted as part of the sprawling RICO case against Trump’s effort to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia. In addition to allegedly aiding the attempted overthrow of a presidential election, Still voted in favor of House and Senate district maps that would have purposefully diluted the voting power of Black and minority voters. Meanwhile, Ashwin is a computer scientist who served with the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency to actually protect the 2020 election.
Iowa is one of the many GOP-controlled states where Republican legislators have forced through deeply unpopular, extremist abortion bans that are wildly out of step with the majority of voters. That’s why Matt Blake is running for the Iowa Senate to flip his district blue and bring common sense and mutual respect back to the statehouse. Matt is a member of his local city council and a Judge Advocate in the Iowa Army National Guard who is proudly pro-choice and committed to supporting women’s rights.
New Hampshire’s GOP trifecta has been on a crusade to restrict access to the ballot box, making voting more burdensome for Granite Staters who are low-income, elderly, or living with disabilities. This year, Democrats have a chance to break that trifecta and restore checks on their extremist agenda. Rep. Hope Damon is committed to making a difference for her constituents on issues from affordable housing to health care. She’s running in a competitive race for reelection so she can continue advocating for local families.
Brian Paquette is a fire lieutenant running to flip a seat in the New Hampshire House and defeat a Republican extremist who is pushing to take funding from public schools, discriminate against LGBTQ+ people, and weaken the democratic process. Brian is a sensible leader who’s ready to help Democrats take control of the New Hampshire legislature and bring common sense back to Concord
Nicole Sidman is running for the North Carolina House in a race that has garnered national attention. Her opponent, Rep. Tricia Cotham, is a former Democrat who ran for the North Carolina House two years ago on a pro-choice platform. But after winning her seat, Cotham switched parties giving North Carolina Republicans the supermajority they needed to override Governor Cooper’s veto power. Cotham then immediately cast the decisive vote to enact an unpopular 12-week abortion ban, the most restrictive attack on reproductive freedom in North Carolina in 50 years. This betrayal spurred Nicole into action, and she’s committed to fighting every right-wing effort to erode freedom.
Dr. David Hill is running for the North Carolina Senate to flip his district blue and break the Republican supermajority that has been sabotaging the Democratic governor’s veto-power. As a pro-choice pediatrician, David is dedicated to the health and well-being of North Carolina families, and he’s running against a Republican who was critical to passing last year’s abortion ban. He’s seen the widespread harm that Republican mismanagement in Raleigh has brought on families, and he’s committed to stopping it.
For over a decade, Wisconsin was considered one of the most gerrymandered states in the country, as Republicans rigged the redistricting process to keep themselves in power. Despite Democrats consistently winning the statewide popular vote, Republicans were able to hold a majority of seats in the legislature – at times, even a supermajority. That all changed this year, when Wisconsin got new maps, setting the stage for 2024 to be the fairest election in half a generation. Jodi Habush Sinykin is an attorney and environmental policy expert running for the Wisconsin Senate to flip her district blue. Her victory would defeat a current member of the Assembly who has been a reliable vote against abortion and contraception.
Fifteen Republicans currently serving in state legislatures are insurrectionists who were in Washington, DC on January 6, 2021. Hundreds more have supported Donald Trump’s attacks on our democracy. We have to elect Democrats in the states who will defend our elections and democratic institutions. Split a donation today among the ten candidates running in competitive races to save our democracy.
