Too often, the Democratic Party has accepted rather than resisted this set of conditions, alienating working people and communities of color. The Indivisible movement’s fight against the Trump agenda has shown that there is a powerful progressive movement that reaches every corner of this country, and the special elections we’ve seen so far in 2017 have shown that that movement has the energy to change elections and force candidates to reckon with us.
Indivisible 435 is an extension of that movement energy, supporting and working alongside our local groups to continue owning their constituent power in their turf and pushing the national conversation back to the interest of the people. This program will involve:
- Electoral tools and resources. One crucial tool that Indivisible groups lack is the voter file, which is absolutely necessary to effectively target outreach to specific households. We’re working on getting Indivisible groups access to the voter file, as well as calling and texting tools that they can use to contact and mobilize voters, independent of any candidate’s campaign.
- Guidance and training. How do you run a voter registration drive or a canvass? How does your group engage with candidates or make decisions about who to support? How do you run for office yourself? These are just a few of the questions that we’re hearing from groups, and we want to help answer them or connect you with the folks who have the answers.
- Expanding the electorate. Republicans have invested years in cynical tricks to keep some Americans out of our democracy. We will work with local groups and partner organizations to engage folks who are currently underrepresented in both voter registration and voter turnout. Building an inclusive movement requires our attention to make sure our elections, and our government, belong to everyone.
- Strategic Targeting: Engaging on key races to reclaim congressional and state power. We’ll identify key congressional, senatorial, and state races where we have strong people power that could make the difference, and where there are opportunities to support emerging progressive leaders. We’ll seek out ways to direct resources and support to local Indivisible groups.
- Defining our values. We’ll be using feedback from our movement to help publicly define our values and create a platform that guides us. We will always aim to be transparent about our theory of change and our plan to win.
- Candidate Endorsements. We’ll be supporting our groups in endorsing key progressive leaders and candidates, based on alignment with our platform and other strategic factors.
You’ll start to see some of these tools and resources in the Fall and others in early 2018.
It’s also important to talk about what we’re not going to do. We are not going to act as an arm of the Democratic Party. We believe that vibrant independent progressive groups like the Indivisible movement play a critical role in holding both parties accountable and pushing them to be better. And we don’t think that any politician is entitled to hold on to their seat of power if they’re not representing their constituents and doing everything they can to protect American values and communities.
Our ideas are winning ideas. But we must behave, strategize, invest and vote like we believe in them. This is a critical moment for expanding what is possible for the Indivisible movement. This is not just about winning one or two election cycles, it’s about rising to this historic moment. It’s about recognizing the path that led us here, the path we need to build and the path that will lead us to what is newly possible: a radically inclusive, progressive and bold future led by regular people who are fed up.
Indivisible national is not doing any of this on its own. Every step of the way, we will be standing indivisible with local group leaders to define and implement this electoral strategy. Together, we will add electoral muscle to constituent power. Together, we will win.
August Recess ToolKit: The BudgetBudget
August Recess Toolkit: Upcoming Tax Cuts FightTax Reform
August Recess Toolkit: ImmigrationImmigration
August Recess Health Care Toolkit: Keep TrumpCare DeadHealth Care