As we gear up for this year’s important state and local races in Virginia and New Jersey, as well as planning for issues-based campaigns in 2021 and 2022, we are constantly doing our homework and research to be sure history doesn’t repeat itself.
Too often after a presidential victory, political parties, activists and national organizers can lose momentum until the next presidential election comes around. We saw how detrimental that was following the 2008 election with the loss of power in dozens of statehouses and governorships, so it’s crucial that while we take a breath we also keep focused on each and every election at the state and local level.
Meaghan Winter is a journalist, whose work has been featured in the New York Times, the Guardian, Bloomberg Businessweek, and many other publications. In her book All Politics Is Local: Why Progressives Must Fight for the States, she captures the importance of prioritizing state and local leadership and politics over federal races-- and why local engagement is so crucial to a more inclusive democracy. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in the nuances of state and local politics and why investing in this effort is so important, and should not be an afterthought but a critical priority.
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