Emerge America’s Alumnae Win Big On Election Night

  • Nov 8, 2017
  • Allison Abney
 


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 8, 2017

CONTACT: Allison Abney
(202) 670-7994Allison@emergeamerica.org

Emerge America’s Alumnae Win Big On Election Night

Voters across the country elected 85 Emerge alumnae in down ballot races. Emerge candidates won in red states and blue states showing that when Democratic women run, they win at similar rates to their male counterparts.                              

Washington, D.C.—Last night, Emerge America’s alumnae delivered wins up and down the ballot when 85 of the organization’s 129 women on ballots in 9 states won their races for local and state office. Emerge alumnae running for the Virginia House of Delegates helped Democrats take back a significant amount of power in the state’s legislature when 11 of the 18 alums running for the body won their races. In fact, of the 15 seats that flipped from red to blue, nine were won by Emerge alumnae. This includes Danica Roem, the first out transgender state legislator in the country, Elizabeth Guzman and Hala Ayala, the first two Latinas in the House of Delegates, and Kathy Tran, the first Asian American woman in the House of Delegates. What’s more, Emerge alumna Deborah Gonzalez won her race for the Georgia State House. Overall in 2017, 151 of the 207 Emerge alumnae that have appeared on a general election ballot won their races—a 73 percent win rate.  

“This is more proof that the women who go through our training programs are given the cutting-edge tools they need to run and win,” said Andrea Dew Steele, Founder and President of Emerge America. “I’m not surprised at all that so many of our alumnae won their races last night. We know that when we recruit top notch Democratic women, give them the training they need to succeed and provide them with a powerful on the ground permanent network to support them when they run, the sky is the limit. Voters in Virginia and elsewhere voted for authentic candidates who will fight for them. We can’t wait to see the amazing things that these women accomplish when they are in office.” 

Since the 2016 election, Emerge America has seen unprecedented new interest from women who want to run. Several of Emerge America’s affiliates doubled their programs to accommodate all the women who want to get trained to run for office. The organization also launched affiliates in six new states. And Emerge America hosted six regional boot camps across the country for women planning to run in 2017 or 2018. The organization is at the heart of a powerful movement led by women that is sweeping the country.

Emerge America, which currently has affiliates in 23 states, has cracked the code on how to get more women to run for office. Since 2002, Emerge America has recruited, trained and provided a powerful network to over 3,000 women. In 2016, Emerge America had 330 alumnae run from 16 state affiliates, 214 ran on the November ballot and 70 percent of them won. In Nevada, Emerge alumnae flipped both houses of the state assembly, and in New Mexico, alumnae flipped the state house.

 

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