On the heels of a closer than expected special election in deep red Kansas and a near miss in Georgia, a Democratic grassroots uprising is pushing the national Democratic party to loosen its iron grip over which races and candidates it prioritizes. So far, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has not invested anything in Montana's upcoming special election in May, where Democrat and Daily Kos endorsee Rob Quist hopes to win the state's at-large House seat vacated by GOP Interior Sec. Ryan Zinke.
The DCCC held its fire on the Wichita seat, which Democrats lost by seven points, but eventually decided to send staff into Georgia, where Jon Ossoff came less than two points shy of winning outright and avoiding a June run-off. Now Montana Democrats have a message for the DCCC: Get in the game. Jonathan Martin writes:
The internecine dispute over where to play could last well beyond this season of special elections and into the 2018 midterm elections. At issue is whether the campaign arm of the House Democrats and the Democratic National Committee should dedicate money and staff to campaigns that may appear to be a reach but that could still galvanize small-dollar donors and activists hungry to compete. [...]
Democratic officials, contributors and activists in Montana, which Mr. Sanders carried in the presidential primary, are clearly agitated over their Washington-based party. They say the top-down leadership never misses an opportunity to play it safe. [...]
“This is the time for the 50-state strategy. What are they waiting for?” said Julia Shaida, a 60-year-old Bozeman yoga teacher who recently moved here from New York. “The energy is here. I read that they didn’t support the Kansas candidate. That’s very upsetting to me.”
It's worth noting here that Montana is no Kansas. It's currently represented by one Democratic senator, Jon Tester. And just last year, Democratic governor Steve Bullock won re-election over billionaire Republican Greg Gianforte, the guy Quist is now challenging for the House seat. In other words, there's a winning playbook to recreate here. There's also demonstrable energy on the ground.
from Daily Kos http://ift.tt/2pIbVY4
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