Endorsements

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DFA endorses candidates at all levels of office from School Board to the Presidency. A DFA-List endorsement brings our national network of activists together, providing key resources to the endorsed campaign: Time, People, Money and Media.

The DFA Endorsement Criteria:

The driving force behind all DFA endorsements is our members. We recognize that all politics is local and that what is considered progressive in San Francisco, CA may be very different from what's considered progressive in Louisville, KY. For this reason, DFA does not have a litmus test of specific progressive positions for which a candidate must stand. Our endorsement is heavily weighted based on these questions.

Will the candidate move the progressive movement forward in their community?

Does the candidate have substantial support from our local members?

Do the candidate's positions and policies fit into DFA's set of core progressive values?

Is the campaign people-powered and the candidate working to win?

DFA Member Support:

The driving force behind all DFA endorsements is our members. We gauge DFA member and local support in a number of different ways. For starters, supporters can go online to their favorite candidate’s application page and publicly add their support using the “Voice your support” feature. We also look to our local DFA groups to see who they have endorsed to use as a gauge for local DFA member support.

Above all, if you know a candidate deserving of a DFA endorsement, we want to hear about it. You can call 802-651-3200 or send an e-mail to political@democracyforamerica.com

Primaries Matter:

Democracy for America is committed to reforming the Democratic Party from the ground up. Part of this mission means supporting Democrats who will fight for progressive values and progressive change. In order to receive an endorsement for a Primary election, a candidate must demonstrate key, distinguishable differences on DFA's progressive values of Community, Security, and Liberty (see: www.DemocracyforAmerica.com/values), as well as overwhelming local DFA support.

Timeline for Endorsement:

Once a campaign has completed the endorsement questionnaire, they are eligible for endorsement. We make endorsement decisions on a rolling basis throughout the applicable election cycle.

Past Endorsement Highlights

Howard Dean for DNC Chair
DFA ran a people-powered campaign to elect Governor Dean to chair the Democratic National Committee. The first use of the 50 State Strategy, Governor Dean campaigned from state to state meeting with party activists and state party chairs. DFA Members rallied at events, wrote thousands of letters to voting delegates in the DNC, and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the campaign. Governor Dean was soundly elected in February 2005.

Deval Patrick for Governor
When Deval Patrick ran for Governor of Massachusetts, he was dismissed early as a long-shot. After DFA's early endorsement, DFA staff and local volunteers put in countless hours during GOTV. Patrick won the primary, with 49% of the vote in a tough three-way race. He went on to defeat Republican Lt. Governor Healey in the general election.

Jerry McNerney for U.S. House
The pundits and power-brokers didn't think McNerney could defeat one of Washington's most powerful congressmen. DFA members proved them wrong -- voting McNerney DFA's 2006 'Grassroots All-Star' and training over 120 staff and volunteers for McNerney's campaign. In the end, McNerney beat Richard Pombo, a seven-term Republican incumbent.

Debra Bowen for Secretary of State
Debra Bowen’s people powered campaign triumphed in a CA election that saw all other statewide Democratic candidates falter. She won because she understood that paper ballots and fair, verifiable elections matter. She was ready to stand up and fight against powerful special interests in California and stop companies like Diebold and ES&S from putting our votes at risk. DFA members were boots on the ground, knocking on doors, making phone calls to voters, and recruiting volunteers.

All past endorsements »»