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Home > Donna Edwards and Others in Congressional Primaries Next Week Hope to
Inject More Progressivism Into the Dem. Party
________________________________________
Donna Edwards and Others in Congressional Primaries Next Week Hope to Inject
More Progressivism Into the Dem. Party
By Steven Rosenfeld [1] / AlterNet [2]
April 21, 2016
The center of gravity in the Democratic Party is shifting toward
progressives in 2016, but the question is how far?
Next Tuesday's Democratic primaries in Maryland and Pennsylvania will begin
to answer that question. There are a handful of races for Congress where the
choices mirror what's seen in the race between Bernie Sanders and Hillary
Clinton, pitting prinicipled idealists against pragmatic insiders.
Pennsylvania is especially important because Democrats see it as a state
where the incumbent Republican senator is vulnerable and a win there could
help them retake that body.
But among progressives, all eyes are on Maryland, and the fiercely fought
race between two U.S. Representatives, Donna Edwards [3] and Chris Van
Hollen [4] to replace the retiring Democratic Sen. Barbara Mikulski. The
primary winner is likely to win the fall election and the choice between
them is stark. Edwards, an African-American single mother who started as a
community activist and has a history of taking bold stances in office, faces
Van Hollen, a longtime legislator who quickly became part of the House
Democratic fundraising and leadership team and is seen as a valued insider
and skilled negotiator.
Edwards' overarching message is "to make history as only the second
African-American women in the Senate," and the only one in almost a
generation since Illinois' Carol Moseley Braun left office in 1999. Edwards,
an energetic, progressive, four-term congresswoman has had an uphill battle
as an independent black women without the fundraising prowess and access of
Van Hollen, who previously headed the Democratic Congressional Campaign
Committee. Van Hollen has vastly [5] outraised Edwards and has most of the
establishment support as a longtime insider-he was a state legislator for 16
years, while Edwards helped create a national domestic violence organization
and then headed a Washington-based foundation for six years.
As with the Sanders-Clinton race, the Washington Post has aggressively sided
with Van Hollen backers and made the race a top priority, publishing a Van
Hollen-friendly or Edwards-hostile piece virtually everyday, and has been
harshly critical of Edwards in its editorials. Both candidates have their
share of labor endorsements, but a perceived slight by Edwards of leadership
of 1199 Hospital Workers Union has led that group to aggressively spend
money to defeat her. This has caused some consternation as to why a union
with many minority members would spend a lot of their money to defeat a
progressive African-American woman.
Van Hollen's financial edge has enabled him to outspend [5] Edwards in
negative TV ads in the two biggest media markets, Washington and Baltimore.
Not surprisingly, Edwards has fallen behind in recent polling [6] after
leading earlier. Still most people expect the race to be decided based upon
the ground game and getting out the vote, especially in Baltimore where
there is a heated mayoral race between two African-American women.
Two-thirds of Baltimore's electorate are African-American women, which in
theory, would likely help Edwards. Her campaign is also urging supporters to
work hard on canvassing and getting out the vote.
Meanwhile Sanders is barnstorming Maryland and may motivate younger voters
in Edwards' direction; both Sanders and Edwards are outsiders, won't take
money from Wall Street banks, favor campaign finance reforms, and are under
attack by the mainstream media. Edwards' main financial support comes from
Emily's List, the national pro-choice PAC supporting women candidates, which
has raised and spent several million dollars on Edwards' behalf.
The contrast between Donna Edwards and Chris Van Hollen mirrors the
Democratic presidential contest; early on, Edwards pointed out that Van
Hollen, during House budget negotiations, was willing to entertain Social
Security cuts as part of a federal debt plan. Van Hollen since has backed
away from that stance, but Edwards' basic criticism has stuck. Democracy for
America [7] and the Progressive Change Campaign Committee [8] have endorsed
Edwards. DFA spokesman Neil Sroka said Thursday, "The choice is between
someone who will be a decent vote in the U.S. Senate versus someone who will
be an organizer in the Senate for progressive ideas."
Tuesday's Other Races
Other congressional races next week feature strong progressive candidates,
especially in the districts where Edwards and Van Hollen are giving up their
seats. A majority [9] of Maryland's fourth congressional district, where
Edwards has served, is African American. There the progressive groups have
endorsed Joseline Pena-Melnyk [10], a state legislator since 2006 who has a
long record of sponsoring bills pushing for greater fairness and equality.
Before that she was an assistant U.S. attorney and a public defender in
Philadelphia. Progressives are also backing state Sen. Jamie Raskin [11] in
Maryland's eighth congressional district, where Van Hollen gave up his seat.
Raskin, a noted constitutional law professor who is currently the Maryland
Senate Democratic whip, is a longtime campaign finance reform advocate who
has fought for marriage equality, ending the death penalty and criminal
justice reform.
Tuesday also features another U.S. Senate race that reflects the full
spectrum of Democrats running in 2016 and is seen as one of the half-dozen
races where the party believes it can defeat an incumbent Republican and
regain a Senate majority. The party's primary in Pennsylvania is a four-way
[12] contest to challenge incumbent Republican Pat Toomey. The party
establishment's pick is Katie McGinty [13], an environmental
activist-turned-government regulator who has been endorsed by the White
House, the state's governor and unions. There's also Joe Sestak [14], an
ex-congressman and veteran who lost to Toomey in 2010; Allentown Mayor Ed
Pawlowski [15], who worked in community development and non-profits; and
John Fetterman [16], mayor of Braddock, a struggling steel town, who boasts
he's not a "traditional, establishment candidate," wants to address all
forms of inequality [17] and endorsed Sanders in January.
Because all of these candidates have staked out a range of center-left
stances-with the exception of more populist Fetterman who is in his first
statewide race-neither the Progressive Change Campaign Committee nor
Democracy for America are endorsing.
Other Progressives Running
These upcoming races just scratch the surface of progressives running for
Congress. In mid-March, Tammy Duckworth [18], an Iraq war veteran who is now
a congresswoman from Illinois, became the state's Democratic Senate nominee,
where she is seen as a strong contender against incumbent Republican Sen.
Mark Kirk. Also in mid-March, North Carolina's Deborah Ross [19], a lawyer
and state legislator for a decade, won its Democratic primary for Senate and
barely trails incumbent Republican Sen. Richard Burr.
In June, there are another half-dozen progressives running in Democratic
primaries. In California, state Attorney General Kamala Harris [20] is
running for Senate, and civil rights attorney Nanette Barragan [21] is
running for a Los Angeles-area House seat. In Nevada, Lucy Flores [22], one
of the first Latino women elected to the state Legislature, is running for a
House seat, and state Attorney General Catherine Cortez-Masto [23] is
seeking to replace retiring Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. Later that
month in New York, Zephyr Teachout [24], a law professor who a few years ago
lost to Andrew Cuomo for governor, is running for a House seat, as is Eric
Kingson [25], a professor and co-founder of the national advocacy group
Social Security Works [26].
Later in the summer, there are yet more progressive candidates in Democratic
primaries. In Wisconsin, former Senator Russ Feingold [27] is hoping to
return to that body. In Florida, Congressman Alan Grayson [28] is seeking
the nomination to fill the seat left open by retiring Republican Sen. Marcio
Rubio. His longtime congressional district director, Susanah Randolph [29],
is running in the Democratic House primary to replace him. In Minnesota's
second district, Angie Craig [30] is running in a House race where the
Republican incumbent is retiring. In Washington, Seattle
activist-turned-state senator Pramila Jayapal [31] is running for House seat
vacated by retiring Rep. Jim McDermott. And there are others running, such
as former New Hampshire congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter [32], who hopes to
retake her seat, and longtime California progressive Rep. Mike Honda [33]
who faces a primary challenge from a Silicon Valley technologist.
The results in all these contests will reveal how much the center of gravity
in the Democratic Party is shifting in 2016.
Steven Rosenfeld covers national political issues for AlterNet, including
America's retirement crisis, democracy and voting rights, and campaigns and
elections. He is the author of "Count My Vote: A Citizen's Guide to Voting"
(AlterNet Books, 2008).
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Report typos and corrections to 'corrections@xxxxxxxxxxxx'. [34]
[35]
________________________________________
Source URL:
http://www.alternet.org/election-2016/donna-edwards-and-others-congressional
-primaries-next-week-hope-inject-more
Links:
[1] http://www.alternet.org/authors/steven-rosenfeld
[2] http://alternet.org
[3] https://donnaedwardsforsenate.com/
[4] http://vanhollen.org/
[5] http://www.marylandscramble.com/2016/04/15/van-hollen-q1-1-8-million/
[6]
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/senate/md/maryland_senate_democ
ratic_primary_van_hollen_vs_edwards-5757.html
[7] https://www.democracyforamerica.com/
[8] http://boldprogressives.org/
[9] https://ballotpedia.org/Maryland's_4th_Congressional_District
[10] http://joselinepenamelnyk.com/
[11] https://jamieraskin.com/
[12]
https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_Senate_election_in_Pennsylvania,_2016
[13] https://ballotpedia.org/Kathleen_McGinty
[14] https://ballotpedia.org/Joe_Sestak
[15] https://ballotpedia.org/Ed_Pawlowski
[16] https://johnfetterman.com/
[17] https://johnfetterman.com/issues/inequality-in-income-and-wealth
[18] http://tammyduckworth.com/
[19] https://www.deborahross.com/
[20] http://www.kamalaharris.org/
[21] http://barraganforcongress.com/
[22] http://www.lucyflores.com/
[23] http://catherinecortezmasto.com/
[24] http://www.zephyrteachoutforcongress.com/
[25] http://www.erickingson.com/
[26] http://www.socialsecurityworks.org/about/
[27] http://russfeingold.com/
[28] http://senatorwithguts.com/
[29] http://randolphforcongress.com/
[30] http://www.angiecraig.com/meet-angie
[31] http://www.pramilaforcongress.com/
[32] http://www.sheaporter.com/
[33] http://mikehonda.com/
[34] mailto:corrections@xxxxxxxxxxxx?Subject=Typo on Donna Edwards and
Others in Congressional Primaries Next Week Hope to Inject More
Progressivism Into the Dem. Party
[35] http://www.alternet.org/
[36] http://www.alternet.org/%2Bnew_src%2B
Published on Alternet (http://www.alternet.org)
Home > Donna Edwards and Others in Congressional Primaries Next Week Hope to
Inject More Progressivism Into the Dem. Party
Donna Edwards and Others in Congressional Primaries Next Week Hope to Inject
More Progressivism Into the Dem. Party
By Steven Rosenfeld [1] / AlterNet [2]
April 21, 2016
The center of gravity in the Democratic Party is shifting toward
progressives in 2016, but the question is how far?
Next Tuesday's Democratic primaries in Maryland and Pennsylvania will begin
to answer that question. There are a handful of races for Congress where the
choices mirror what's seen in the race between Bernie Sanders and Hillary
Clinton, pitting prinicipled idealists against pragmatic insiders.
Pennsylvania is especially important because Democrats see it as a state
where the incumbent Republican senator is vulnerable and a win there could
help them retake that body.
But among progressives, all eyes are on Maryland, and the fiercely fought
race between two U.S. Representatives, Donna Edwards [3] and Chris Van
Hollen [4] to replace the retiring Democratic Sen. Barbara Mikulski. The
primary winner is likely to win the fall election and the choice between
them is stark. Edwards, an African-American single mother who started as a
community activist and has a history of taking bold stances in office, faces
Van Hollen, a longtime legislator who quickly became part of the House
Democratic fundraising and leadership team and is seen as a valued insider
and skilled negotiator.
Edwards' overarching message is "to make history as only the second
African-American women in the Senate," and the only one in almost a
generation since Illinois' Carol Moseley Braun left office in 1999. Edwards,
an energetic, progressive, four-term congresswoman has had an uphill battle
as an independent black women without the fundraising prowess and access of
Van Hollen, who previously headed the Democratic Congressional Campaign
Committee. Van Hollen has vastly [5] outraised Edwards and has most of the
establishment support as a longtime insider-he was a state legislator for 16
years, while Edwards helped create a national domestic violence organization
and then headed a Washington-based foundation for six years.
As with the Sanders-Clinton race, the Washington Post has aggressively sided
with Van Hollen backers and made the race a top priority, publishing a Van
Hollen-friendly or Edwards-hostile piece virtually everyday, and has been
harshly critical of Edwards in its editorials. Both candidates have their
share of labor endorsements, but a perceived slight by Edwards of leadership
of 1199 Hospital Workers Union has led that group to aggressively spend
money to defeat her. This has caused some consternation as to why a union
with many minority members would spend a lot of their money to defeat a
progressive African-American woman.
Van Hollen's financial edge has enabled him to outspend [5] Edwards in
negative TV ads in the two biggest media markets, Washington and Baltimore.
Not surprisingly, Edwards has fallen behind in recent polling [6] after
leading earlier. Still most people expect the race to be decided based upon
the ground game and getting out the vote, especially in Baltimore where
there is a heated mayoral race between two African-American women.
Two-thirds of Baltimore's electorate are African-American women, which in
theory, would likely help Edwards. Her campaign is also urging supporters to
work hard on canvassing and getting out the vote.
Meanwhile Sanders is barnstorming Maryland and may motivate younger voters
in Edwards' direction; both Sanders and Edwards are outsiders, won't take
money from Wall Street banks, favor campaign finance reforms, and are under
attack by the mainstream media. Edwards' main financial support comes from
Emily's List, the national pro-choice PAC supporting women candidates, which
has raised and spent several million dollars on Edwards' behalf.
The contrast between Donna Edwards and Chris Van Hollen mirrors the
Democratic presidential contest; early on, Edwards pointed out that Van
Hollen, during House budget negotiations, was willing to entertain Social
Security cuts as part of a federal debt plan. Van Hollen since has backed
away from that stance, but Edwards' basic criticism has stuck. Democracy for
America [7] and the Progressive Change Campaign Committee [8] have endorsed
Edwards. DFA spokesman Neil Sroka said Thursday, "The choice is between
someone who will be a decent vote in the U.S. Senate versus someone who will
be an organizer in the Senate for progressive ideas."
Tuesday's Other Races
Other congressional races next week feature strong progressive candidates,
especially in the districts where Edwards and Van Hollen are giving up their
seats. A majority [9] of Maryland's fourth congressional district, where
Edwards has served, is African American. There the progressive groups have
endorsed Joseline Pena-Melnyk [10], a state legislator since 2006 who has a
long record of sponsoring bills pushing for greater fairness and equality.
Before that she was an assistant U.S. attorney and a public defender in
Philadelphia. Progressives are also backing state Sen. Jamie Raskin [11] in
Maryland's eighth congressional district, where Van Hollen gave up his seat.
Raskin, a noted constitutional law professor who is currently the Maryland
Senate Democratic whip, is a longtime campaign finance reform advocate who
has fought for marriage equality, ending the death penalty and criminal
justice reform.
Tuesday also features another U.S. Senate race that reflects the full
spectrum of Democrats running in 2016 and is seen as one of the half-dozen
races where the party believes it can defeat an incumbent Republican and
regain a Senate majority. The party's primary in Pennsylvania is a four-way
[12] contest to challenge incumbent Republican Pat Toomey. The party
establishment's pick is Katie McGinty [13], an environmental
activist-turned-government regulator who has been endorsed by the White
House, the state's governor and unions. There's also Joe Sestak [14], an
ex-congressman and veteran who lost to Toomey in 2010; Allentown Mayor Ed
Pawlowski [15], who worked in community development and non-profits; and
John Fetterman [16], mayor of Braddock, a struggling steel town, who boasts
he's not a "traditional, establishment candidate," wants to address all
forms of inequality [17] and endorsed Sanders in January.
Because all of these candidates have staked out a range of center-left
stances-with the exception of more populist Fetterman who is in his first
statewide race-neither the Progressive Change Campaign Committee nor
Democracy for America are endorsing.
Other Progressives Running
These upcoming races just scratch the surface of progressives running for
Congress. In mid-March, Tammy Duckworth [18], an Iraq war veteran who is now
a congresswoman from Illinois, became the state's Democratic Senate nominee,
where she is seen as a strong contender against incumbent Republican Sen.
Mark Kirk. Also in mid-March, North Carolina's Deborah Ross [19], a lawyer
and state legislator for a decade, won its Democratic primary for Senate and
barely trails incumbent Republican Sen. Richard Burr.
In June, there are another half-dozen progressives running in Democratic
primaries. In California, state Attorney General Kamala Harris [20] is
running for Senate, and civil rights attorney Nanette Barragan [21] is
running for a Los Angeles-area House seat. In Nevada, Lucy Flores [22], one
of the first Latino women elected to the state Legislature, is running for a
House seat, and state Attorney General Catherine Cortez-Masto [23] is
seeking to replace retiring Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. Later that
month in New York, Zephyr Teachout [24], a law professor who a few years ago
lost to Andrew Cuomo for governor, is running for a House seat, as is Eric
Kingson [25], a professor and co-founder of the national advocacy group
Social Security Works [26].
Later in the summer, there are yet more progressive candidates in Democratic
primaries. In Wisconsin, former Senator Russ Feingold [27] is hoping to
return to that body. In Florida, Congressman Alan Grayson [28] is seeking
the nomination to fill the seat left open by retiring Republican Sen. Marcio
Rubio. His longtime congressional district director, Susanah Randolph [29],
is running in the Democratic House primary to replace him. In Minnesota's
second district, Angie Craig [30] is running in a House race where the
Republican incumbent is retiring. In Washington, Seattle
activist-turned-state senator Pramila Jayapal [31] is running for House seat
vacated by retiring Rep. Jim McDermott. And there are others running, such
as former New Hampshire congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter [32], who hopes to
retake her seat, and longtime California progressive Rep. Mike Honda [33]
who faces a primary challenge from a Silicon Valley technologist.
The results in all these contests will reveal how much the center of gravity
in the Democratic Party is shifting in 2016.
Steven Rosenfeld covers national political issues for AlterNet, including
America's retirement crisis, democracy and voting rights, and campaigns and
elections. He is the author of "Count My Vote: A Citizen's Guide to Voting"
(AlterNet Books, 2008).
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.
Report typos and corrections to 'corrections@xxxxxxxxxxxx'. [34]
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.[35]
Source URL:
http://www.alternet.org/election-2016/donna-edwards-and-others-congressional
-primaries-next-week-hope-inject-more
Links:
[1] http://www.alternet.org/authors/steven-rosenfeld
[2] http://alternet.org
[3] https://donnaedwardsforsenate.com/
[4] http://vanhollen.org/
[5] http://www.marylandscramble.com/2016/04/15/van-hollen-q1-1-8-million/
[6]
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/senate/md/maryland_senate_democ
ratic_primary_van_hollen_vs_edwards-5757.html
[7] https://www.democracyforamerica.com/
[8] http://boldprogressives.org/
[9] https://ballotpedia.org/Maryland's_4th_Congressional_District
[10] http://joselinepenamelnyk.com/
[11] https://jamieraskin.com/
[12]
https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_Senate_election_in_Pennsylvania,_2016
[13] https://ballotpedia.org/Kathleen_McGinty
[14] https://ballotpedia.org/Joe_Sestak
[15] https://ballotpedia.org/Ed_Pawlowski
[16] https://johnfetterman.com/
[17] https://johnfetterman.com/issues/inequality-in-income-and-wealth
[18] http://tammyduckworth.com/
[19] https://www.deborahross.com/
[20] http://www.kamalaharris.org/
[21] http://barraganforcongress.com/
[22] http://www.lucyflores.com/
[23] http://catherinecortezmasto.com/
[24] http://www.zephyrteachoutforcongress.com/
[25] http://www.erickingson.com/
[26] http://www.socialsecurityworks.org/about/
[27] http://russfeingold.com/
[28] http://senatorwithguts.com/
[29] http://randolphforcongress.com/
[30] http://www.angiecraig.com/meet-angie
[31] http://www.pramilaforcongress.com/
[32] http://www.sheaporter.com/
[33] http://mikehonda.com/
[34] mailto:corrections@xxxxxxxxxxxx?Subject=Typo on Donna Edwards and
Others in Congressional Primaries Next Week Hope to Inject More
Progressivism Into the Dem. Party
[35] http://www.alternet.org/
[36] http://www.alternet.org/%2Bnew_src%2B
