Democracy for America Announces Top Ten Grassroots All-Stars

Released: Feb 17, 2012 1:31 PM

Largest Grassroots Contest in DFA History; 2nd Round of Voting Expected to be Very Competitive

Burlington, VT – Today, Democracy for America (DFA) announced the top ten winners of the first round of voting in the Grassroots All-Stars Contest. With 70,000 votes, this is the largest endorsement contest DFA has hosted to date. The winners of the first round will compete in a second round for the top prize.

The top ten winners are:

1)Alan Grayson FL - 27
2)Ilya Sheyman IL - 10
3)Norman Solomon CA - 02
4)Jose Hernandez CA - 10
5)Mark Pocan WI - 02
6)Lois Frankel FL - 22
7)Angela Zimmann OH - 05
8)Kelda Roys WI - 02
9)Eric Griego NM - 01
10)Annie Kuster NH - 02

 “This is a critical year to win back the House and we are getting started on a great note with some real progressive champions who will be fighters and truth-tellers in Congress,” said Jim Dean, Chair of DFA. “With this Grassroots All Stars competition for House challengers, we will begin the largest campaign season in DFA’s history.”

Grassroots All-Stars (www.grassrootsallstars.com) is an annual competition for House challengers and open seats. Candidates compete for online votes to demonstrate support among DFA members, and the candidate with the most votes wins. The winner of the 2012 Grassroots All-Star Competition will receive: 

- The title of "2012 DFA Grassroots All-Star" and DFA's endorsement

- A commitment to raise $20,000 in small donations from our national membership.

- A commitment to tap into our national membership to recruit volunteers over the course of your campaign and other support. (See www.grassrootsallstars.com/faq)

Two runners-up also receive prizes.  

Past winners of the whole contest include Jerry McNerney, Charlie Brown, and Beth Krom. The voting for the second round will end at 11:59PM Pacific time, Tuesday, February 28th. The announcement of the winner will be made LIVE on telephone town hall event on Thursday March 1st.

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ABOUT DEMOCRACY FOR AMERICA
Democracy for America is a people-powered Democratic Political Action Committee. With over one million members nationwide, DFA is a grassroots powerhouse working to change our country and the Democratic Party from the bottom-up.

www.DemocracyForAmerica.com
Paid for by Democracy for America, www.democracyforamerica.com, and not authorized by any candidate.

Governor Howard Dean Speaks Out Against Komen Foundation for De-funding Breast Cancer Screenings Provided by Planned Parenthood

Released: Feb 1, 2012 1:20 PM

“The Komen Foundation has abandoned hundreds of thousands of women who rely on breast cancer screenings - over a hundred and seventy thousand through its partnership with Planned Parenthood in recent years.”
– Gov. Howard Dean

Burlington, VT – Statement from Gov. Howard Dean, former member of the Board of Directors for New England Planned Parenthood released today via Facebook:

“The Komen Foundation has abandoned hundreds of thousands of women who rely on breast cancer screenings- over a hundred and seventy thousand through its partnership with Planned Parenthood in recent years. By caving in to pressure from the far right, the Komen Foundation has demonstrated that they lack courage. Organizations which lack courage eventually fail. I support calls for the corporate donors to re-evaluate their support for Komen so that consumers aren't forced to re-evaluate buying their products. I urge continued support for Planned Parenthood and the work they do to provide women's health services and organizations who will continue the fight against breast cancer without endangering women's lives for political purposes. Learn more about Komen's corporate sponsors at their website: http://ww5.komen.org/corporatepartners.aspx Support Planned Parenthood: http://bit.ly/y0PtUQ.”

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ABOUT DEMOCRACY FOR AMERICA
Founded by Gov. Howard Dean, Democracy for America is a people-powered Democratic Political Action Committee. With over one million members nationwide, DFA is a grassroots powerhouse working to change our country and the Democratic Party from the bottom-up.

www.DemocracyForAmerica.com
Paid for by Democracy for America, www.democracyforamerica.com, and not authorized by any candidate.