One year after Trump's inauguration and the first #WomensMarch, the Resistance is stronger than ever.
We're proud to be part of it.https://t.co/YiwfzmQNdr
— Swing Left (@swingleft) January 20, 2018
.
Okay, I got distracted. What I’d been seeing in advance about the 2018 Women’s March wasn’t always encouraging, and there was so much day-to-day churn from the Oval Office occupants. Should’ve known that the #Resistance is deeper and much, much stronger than its opposition…
… [T]he energy behind the anti-Donald Trump protests that exploded a year ago, which turned everything from T-shirts to yoga into a form of political “resistance,” has started to coalesce into a surprisingly sophisticated political force ahead of November’s midterm elections.
“Last year we marched and we resisted and we organized, and now we’re going to bring that collective power to the polls,” said Bob Bland, co-chair of the Women’s March. “Moving into 2018, we need to look beyond just ‘resistance.'”
This weekend, the anniversary of Trump’s inauguration and the massive Women’s March that followed, there will be more marches — 389 are planned around the world. But organizers this year are more focused on a new political effort dubbed PowerToThePolls, which aims to register 1 million voters and will kick off Sunday in Las Vegas.
In fact, almost everyone involved in the “Resistance,” from scrappy new startups to venerable stalwarts like the American Civil Liberties Union, are turning their focus to the midterms, in which Democrats are trying to seize control of Congress from Republicans.
“Central to our philosophy is fighting the fight at hand. Last year, that was advocacy. This year it’s electoral,” said Ezra Levin, the co-founder of Indivisible, which started as an organizing guide and has since blossomed into a network of hundreds of local groups across the country. “It’s do or die for November.” …
The Government is shutdown.
The People ain't!#WomensMarch2018 #WomensMarchDC pic.twitter.com/68mjaDHTGC— Luisa Haynes (@wokeluisa) January 20, 2018
Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta, Denver #WomensMarch2018 pic.twitter.com/5LE1MNftXt
— Tim O'Brien (@TimOBrien) January 20, 2018
A crucial piece of reporting that unfortunately didn't make it into this piece: most women I interviewed for this story said they are running because Trump won AND because Hillary lost. They are avenging her defeat. https://t.co/78YlUtfD87
— Charlotte Alter (@CharlotteAlter) January 18, 2018
… Call it payback, call it a revolution, call it the Pink Wave, inspired by marchers in their magenta hats, and the activism that followed. There is an unprecedented surge of first-time female candidates, overwhelmingly Democratic, running for offices big and small, from the U.S. Senate and state legislatures to local school boards. At least 79 women are exploring runs for governor in 2018, potentially doubling a record for female candidates set in 1994, according to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University. The number of Democratic women likely challenging incumbents in the U.S. House of Representatives is up nearly 350% from 41 women in 2016. Roughly 900 women contacted Emily’s List, which recruits and trains pro-choice Democratic women, about running for office from 2015 to 2016; since President Trump’s election, more than 26,000 women have reached out about launching a campaign. The group had to knock down a wall in its Washington office to make room for more staff.
Empowering Open Thread: The 2018 Women’s MarchPost + Comments (163)