The number of Democrats who are running for Congress in 2018 has jumped 58% over 2014, as The Resistance is more than marches and Internet protests. It is a mobilization of candidates to stop Trump.
Vice News reported, “Already 408 Democrats have thrown their hats into the ring, a 58 percent increase over the 259 who had declared by this point in the run-up to the 2014 midterms. And several hundred more candidates are likely to join races across the country as the Democratic Party and multiple outside progressive groups recruit their own candidates. This tsunami of Democratic challengers will likely make it more difficult for President Donald Trump to pass his legislative agenda as members of Congress — Republicans and Democrats alike — will be wary of casting votes that provide ammo to progressive Democratic challengers.”
There is a very logical explanation for the surge in candidates. It is much more appealing for a potential candidate to be on offense than defense. When President Obama was in office, Democrats spent years on the defensive. As the opposition party to current President Trump, Democratic candidates now have the advantage of running against an unpopular president as opposition. For new candidates who want to get elected to make an immediate impact, nothing will be more impactful than flipping House seats and stopping Trump’s agenda dead in its tracks.
People have responded to the crisis of Trump’s election by stepping up to do something about the direction that Republicans want to take the country in. The Resistance isn’t just an Internet meme, a march, or a slogan. It is people all across this country taking the government back from the billionaires and special interests. It’s a wave of candidates who are saying no to more tax cuts for the wealthy, the gutting of social programs that benefit the needy, and less health care for all.
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The Resistance is a real movement, and waves of Democratic candidates are mobilizing to win House elections and shut down the Trump agenda.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
