(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Early voting started in VA. My pitch for Jessica Anderson and other Dems to flip the VA House. [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-10-06 Jessica Anderson is running as the Democratic challenger in a split-even district (HD-71) against a right-wing Republican. She is a fascinating candidate because she had initially been ignored by the Democratic establishment. She was a political novice without any large donors to back her up. Yet things changed after she showed how much money she could raise as an influencer. She is certainly a threat to the GOP and has even gotten the attention of Gov. Youngkin. Her TikTok videos initially were just about motherhood and running, yet she took a turn two years ago into politics and has a large following as a result. I asked how she made the shift into politics. “It was a combination of things,” she told me. “My oldest daughter came out as bisexual, which opened my eyes to other perspectives. It was the hardship of working in the school system. Then January 6th happened, which was the first day I spoke out.” Anderson has leveraged her platform using hundreds of small donors, with the average donation being $26. Her Republican incumbent opponent, Amanda Batten, goes the more traditional route of taking large corporate donations. In fact, Batten’s largest contributor is her district’s monopolistic energy corporation, Dominion Energy, whom she serves well. And while Anderson has worked for years for a public school, Batten’s record on education has been dismal. She has voted to take money away from traditional public schools to fund alternatives, as well as against collective bargaining rights for teachers. (Although Batten’s campaign bought 1,000 doughnuts for teachers to try to make up for it.) Batten’s track record on gun safety is just appalling, as she voted against every common-sense measure to include red flag laws and background checks. Her many anti-choice abortion votes are no better. She always votes along the lines of her MAGA colleagues, but given this is a swing district, is smart enough not to use culture war rhetoric in order to sound more moderate. I urge you to support Anderson in her race for delegate. She truly is running a grassroots campaign that is taking on a powerful Republican backed by corporate interests. This is personal for me because this is the district that I grew up in. I’d very much like my friends and family to be represented by someone who has their interests at heart for a change. x This is a campaign that anyone can be a part of 💜 pic.twitter.com/er6sxltkUq — Jessica Anderson For VA HouseofDelegates (@JessAnderson4VA) May 13, 2023 Jessica Anderson campaign website I am also going to be pushing for Brainwrap’s page, X for Z , (his GenX self is trying to save democracy for Gen Z), which has links to multiple ActBlue fundraising pages where you can donate directly to Democrats running for: Virginia and New Jersey have elections THIS YEAR, and voting has already started in Virginia. We need to flip the VA House (GOP has 51 out of 100 seats) and expand the Senate (we have slight majority). This will also ensure the end of Glen Youngkin’s political career. x 📣 Today would be a good day to help flip #VirginiaBlueIn23. Donate today!https://t.co/z0EMD6hVfO — Charles Gaba isn't paying for this account. (@charles_gaba) February 20, 2023 AS always, I’m also pushing 90for90.org , which is trying to register a record number of voters in Old Dominion. There’s GOOD NEWS and BAD NEWS. The GOOD NEWS: x 🚨: The same 3 Greater Williamsburg area LDs have been the early vote leaders for many days now. HD 71 - (D) Anderson v. (R) Batten SD 26 - (D) Garner v. (R) McDougle SD 24 - (D) Mason v. (R) Diggs 🚨: HD 71 shares precincts with both SD 26 & SD 24 https://t.co/ZHEgMeMNoc pic.twitter.com/mSqiDcNeOa — 90 For 90 (@90For90) October 6, 2023 The BAD NEWS: x With so much at stake in Virginia & the U.S. this election cycle, please make sure to register to vote prior to October 16th if you’ll be 18 y.o. (or older) by November 7th. Va. needs better voter turnout in 2023 than the circled years below⬇️ 🗣Your vote is your voice. Use it. pic.twitter.com/9EsKb2d8V9 — 90 For 90 (@90For90) October 3, 2023 Register, vote, and let’s do this! [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/10/6/2197900/-Early-voting-started-in-VA-My-pitch-for-Jessica-Anderson-and-other-Dems-to-flip-the-VA-House?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/