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Tag Archives: Primary

Making 218,473 friends along the way

05 Wednesday Aug 2020

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

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Elad Gross, missouri, Primary

Last night, in the Missouri Attorney General Democratic Party primary:

State of Missouri – Primary Election, August 04, 2020
Unofficial Results
as of 8/5/2020 5:49:13 PM

Attorney General 3575 of 3575 Precincts Reported
[….]

Rich Finneran Democratic 271,436 55.405%
Elad Gross Democratic 218,473 44.595%
Party Total: 489,909
[….]

Elad Gross (D) [2020 file photo].

From Elad Gross (D):

Thank You for the Opportunity

This is long, but, if you read until the end, I promise it will be worth it.

I remember touching the imprint of the state seal on my folder on October 4, 2018. I was sitting in a Cole County courtroom listening to Eric Greitens’ lawyer argue about how the public deserved no transparency, how our government can so easily be broken, and how it should stay that way.

I got that folder working as an Assistant Attorney General of Missouri. It witnessed some of the proudest moments of my career, many of which were prefaced with, “Your Honor, I am here on behalf of the People of Missouri.”

I decided in that courtroom to take a shot, to run for Attorney General, to try to fix the brokenness so many of us live every day. And you came with me.

One of the first invitations I got was from Stoddard County. For the next two years, I would travel to 567 more events all over our state and spend a lot more time in courtrooms trying to hold our government accountable.

In the middle of it all, one of our staff members, Darlisa, asked me a question. “What is your number one priority right now? I mean, winning the election….”

“No. I’m not running to win. I’m running to make Missouri better. And when we forget that, whatever the outcome, we’ve already lost.”

You believed that too.

We had a great time. We made campaigning fun. We showed Missouri what this can be, how it can be so meaningful, how it can be real.

That’s how we broke down so many divisions in our state. We had Republicans crossing over to vote Democratic. We had both young and old voting for the first time. We had at least one woman asking for the “ballot with Elad on it.” I know because they are still texting me!!! (It’s OK. You can still text!)

I know some folks will look at this campaign and try to draw conclusions about where our electoral focus should be in Missouri. I ask you not to fall for that trap. Missouri is a special place. We’re in this broken spot because we’ve ignored so many folks who don’t have money or power. Building trust doesn’t happen overnight, especially after years of breaking it. Visit with people. Listen to them. Come with patience and compassion and understanding. And don’t give up.

Almost 200,000 Missourians voted for the kid with a funny sounding name. Just not enough people saw what we built by 7 PM on August 4.

These last two years have meant the world to me. We made Missouri better. And I know we’re not done yet.

On November 3, I’ll be voting for Rich Finneran to be Missouri’s next Attorney General. Until then, I’ll be helping him get there. I met Rich years ago, and, before and even during all of this, I kept volunteering to guest judge his appellate advocacy classes he taught at Wash U. Rich’s students love him for a reason. I hope you get to know him too because he is going to need all the help he can get in the general election. We need a new Attorney General very badly.

I also want you to find a local candidate, someone running for state representative or state senate or county commissioner or school board. I want you to contact them. I want you to ask them why they’re running. And if you like the answer, ask them how you can help. Goodness knows we need you.

Finally, and most importantly, I want you to know who helped pull this all together.

Jessica Lambrecht was the firebrand manager of this campaign. I don’t know what Freddy Doss’s official position was because he would do whatever it took on any given day. I’ve know these two for a very long time. This campaign meant so much to so many of you because it was run by some of the best friends anyone could ask for. They built the most active, responsive, dedicated campaign Missouri has seen in a long time. And they helped other campaigns too all over our state. You need to call them.

Daniel Williams came on board a little later, but he made up for lost time. He responded to an email. Little did he know he would become the volunteer manager for a statewide campaign with A LOT of amazing volunteers. He ran a program that reached out to many hundreds of thousands of people in Missouri. He also adopted his new dog Barney during this campaign, locking up the canine vote at a crucial time. There are few people I’ve met anywhere who work harder than Daniel. Call him too.

Our interns were phenomenal. We wanted this campaign to teach young folks how to be more civically engaged. I asked our interns to lead on making policy, to creating volunteer plans, to taking ownership of our state. In the years to come, you’ll see them fighting in every corner of Missouri.

I realized we weren’t going to pull it off early last night. I wanted to spend the time with them, especially at the moment when the press would eventually call it. Maybe it was the teacher in me. I couldn’t have asked for a better sendoff.

My wife, Tasha, and my mom, Margalit, were always ready to tell me what to do. They were usually right. And now they both have that in writing, along with more free time for my manual labor at two locations in St. Louis City, imagine that.

Our amazing volunteers truly were that. They would walk door-to-door days after surgery, text half the state on their own, call and listen patiently for a chance to get a voter, and do everything humanly possible to improve our state. I’d do anything for them.

To all of our record-number of donors, to all of the folks who endorsed this campaign, to everyone who shared my name with a friend, thank you for believing in me.

There’s nothing I’ll be able to do in my life to repay you all for what you’ve done for me and for our state. You gave your time, your money, your energy. I promise you I’ll keep fighting to make your dedication worthwhile.

Missouri, thank you. I love you…

[….]

.

Class.

Nothing lasts forever

05 Wednesday Aug 2020

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

1st Congressional District, Cori Bush, Lacy Clay, missouri, Primary

Last night, in the 1st Congressional District primary:

State of Missouri – Primary Election, August 04, 2020
Unofficial Results
as of 8/5/2020 5:16:16 PM

U.S. Representative – District 1 729 of 729 Precincts Reported

Winnie Heartstrong Republican 4,324 38.415%
Anthony Rogers Republican 6,932 61.585%
Party Total: 11,256

Cori Bush Democratic 72,812 48.603%
Lacy Clay Democratic 68,201 45.525%
Katherine (Kat) Bruckner Democratic 8,796 5.871%
Party Total: 149,809

Alex Furman Libertarian 336 100.000%
Party Total: 336

Total Votes: 161,401

[emphasis added]

Winnie Heartstrong, REP
St. Louis 3,307
St. Louis City 1,017

Anthony Rogers, REP
St. Louis 5,242
St. Louis City 1,690

Cori Bush, DEM
St. Louis 36,288
St. Louis City 36,524

Lacy Clay, DEM
St. Louis 38,699
St. Louis City 29,502

Katherine Kat Bruckner, DEM
St. Louis 4,021
St. Louis City 4,775

Alex Furman, LIB
St. Louis 249
St. Louis City 87

[emphasis added]

Things change.

Joe Biden (D) – Missouri Presidential Preference Primary

11 Wednesday Mar 2020

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Joe Biden, missouri, Primary

Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) [2020 file photo].

Yesterday, in the Missouri primary.

From the Missouri Secretary of State web site:

State of Missouri – Presidential Primary Election, March 10, 2020
Unofficial Results
as of 3/11/2020 6:24:20 AM
3653 of 3653 Precincts Reported
Office/Candidate Name Party Votes % of Votes U.S. President

Amy Klobuchar Democratic 2,652 0.402%
Tom Steyer Democratic 579 0.088%
Tulsi Gabbard Democratic 4,838 0.733%
Leonard J. Steinman II Democratic 176 0.027%
Cory Booker Democratic 647 0.098%

Joseph R. Biden Democratic 396,826 60.118%

Elizabeth Warren Democratic 8,066 1.222%
Pete Buttigieg Democratic 3,272 0.496%
Bernie Sanders Democratic 228,244 34.578%
Velma Steinman Democratic 190 0.029%
Henry Hewes Democratic 93 0.014%
Andrew Yang Democratic 944 0.143%
Roque De La Fuente Democratic 64 0.010%
John K. Delaney Democratic 158 0.024%
Julián Castro Democratic 103 0.016%
Deval Patrick Democratic 52 0.008%
Marianne Williamson Democratic 169 0.026%
Michael Bennet Democratic 203 0.031%
Michael R. Bloomberg Democratic 9,754 1.478%
Steve Burke Democratic 122 0.018%
Robby Wells Democratic 79 0.012%
William C. (Bill) Haas Democratic 391 0.059%
Uncommitted Democratic 2,461 0.373%

Party Total: 660,083

[emphasis added]

In Boone County:

Joseph R. Biden Democratic 15,283 50.494%
Bernie Sanders Democratic 13,604 44.947%

In Greene County:

Joseph R. Biden Democratic 15,490 51.630%
Bernie Sanders Democratic 13,288 44.290%

In Johnson County:

Joseph R. Biden Democratic 2,217 58.666%
Bernie Sanders Democratic 1,341 35.486%

In Kansas City:

Joseph R. Biden Democratic 31,434 57.680%
Bernie Sanders Democratic 20,912 38.373%

In Jackson County:

Joseph R. Biden Democratic 27,996 61.360%
Bernie Sanders Democratic 15,615 34.224%

In Clay County:

Joseph R. Biden Democratic 17,116 58.842%
Bernie Sanders Democratic 10,534 36.214%

In St. Louis City:

Joseph R. Biden Democratic 33,543 53.442%
Bernie Sanders Democratic 25,962 41.364%

In St. Louis County:

Joseph R. Biden Democratic 112,325 65.187%
Bernie Sanders Democratic 50,079 29.063%

Joe Biden (D) won every county in the state.

Presidential Campaign Meta

10 Tuesday Mar 2020

Posted by Michael Bersin in meta

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

advance, communications, earned media, Joe Biden, meta, missouri, presidential campaign, Primary

Saturday, early evening, at Former Vice President Joe Biden’s (D) presidential campaign rally at the Liberty Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri:

Campaign advance staffer speaking with a videographer in the crowd in front of the main press riser.

It’s a young person’s game, working in event advance and communications for a campaign.

That is also true if you’re covering presidential campaigns. Still, we get the press advisories, we RSVP to the event, we get the credential confirmation (and print it out), charge the batteries, check the weather, check the parking availability, grab the gear (always ready), and go.

You trudge up the hill, check out the two long lines, choose the shorter one for the media entrance (yep, that’s it). The camera is already out, because you never know who you’ll run into. Sure enough, there are pictures to be taken.

Your name is checked on the list. If it’s there you get an event credential with a safety pin. If it’s not your first rodeo you already have a safety pin attached to your outlet credential.

There’s a main riser with a rotating stills section (that means you can camp out if there’s no demand for the space, otherwise, still photographers rotate in and out). There’s a cut (side) riser. The same rules basically apply, unless you’re otherwise directed.

As we waited we noted a guy in the crowd with a video camera on a ten foot poll standing twenty feet in front of the main press riser waving his getup in the line of sight to the podium. We climb off the riser, find a member of the advance team and point to the camera on a pole floating in the crowd. The staffer gets it instantly.

The staff handled it perfectly. They waded into the crowd and talked with the individual, got him out of the crowd, handed him a media credential, and plopped him down in the rotating stills section of the main press riser. No more problem. Everyone was happy. No scene, no drama.

The advance and communications staff were pros. I got almost 1100 frames.

Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) – presidential campaign rally – Liberty Memorial, Kansas City, Missouri, March 7, 2020.

Previously:

Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) – campaign rally at the Liberty Memorial – Kansas City – March 7, 2020 (March 8, 2020)

Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) – campaign rally at the Liberty Memorial – Kansas City – March 7, 2020

08 Sunday Mar 2020

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Bob Holden, campaign rally, Emanuel Ceaver, Joe Biden, Kansas City, Liberty Memorial, missouri, president, Primary

Former Vice President Joe Biden’s (D) presidential campaign held a get out the vote rally early yesterday evening at the Liberty Memorial in anticipation of Missouri’s presidential primary on Tuesday, March 10th. I estimate something over two thousand individuals in attendance.

The rally was held in the plaza atop the Liberty Memorial.

Former Missouri Governor Bob Holden (D) introduced Representative Emanuel Cleaver (D).

Former Missouri Governor Bob Holden (D).

https://showmeprogress.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/bobholdenbidenrallykansascity030720.mp3

Representative Cleaver introduced Joe Biden.

https://showmeprogress.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/emanuelcleaverbidenkc030720.mp3

Joe Biden’s remarks [edited for length and content]:

https://showmeprogress.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/joebidenkansascitymissouri030720.mp3

A few minutes into his remarks, two or three individuals started shouting. Joe Biden addressed them briefly and asked them to meet with him after he spoke.

Previously:

Sen. Kamala Harris (D): Endorsement of Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) for President (March 7, 2020)

When your campaign budget doesn’t have enough for television or direct mail

04 Wednesday Mar 2020

Posted by Michael Bersin in campaign finance

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Bernie Sanders, missouri, president, Primary, sidewalk chalk

Today in west central Missouri:

2020IMG_037320200304

“Cancel Student Debt”

Former Vice President Joe Biden (D): Alabama, Arkansas, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia

04 Wednesday Mar 2020

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Joe Biden, president, Primary, Super Tuesday

Well.

And, at this point, leading in Maine. Don’t hold your breath waiting for California. It’s going to take a while. Mail-in ballots.

Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) [2014 file photo].

On to Missouri and “Little” Tuesday on March 10th.

Previously:

Sen. Jean Carnahan (D) on Joe Biden (D) (April 3, 2019)

Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) has a really good night (March 3, 2020)

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D): ad running in Missouri

02 Monday Mar 2020

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

ad, Elizabeth Warren, Mike Bloomberg, missouri, president, Primary

The Missouri presidential preference primary is on Tuesday, March 10th.

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) [2019 file photo].

The campaign fundraising is going well.

I’m Mike Bloomberg, Mike Bloomberg, Bloomberg.

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D): You probably seen more ads from Michael Bloomberg than the rest of us running for president put together. Big money is powerful but it doesn’t always win.

I know that firsthand. When I ran against an incumbent Republican to take a US Senate seat away from Mitch McConnell, Bloomberg endorsed the Republican and he raised big money for him.

But I beat him anyway.

I’m Elizabeth Warren and I approve this message because I believe our democracy should work for you, not the billionaires.

Elizabeth Warren’s campaign raised $29 million in February. She’s in it for the long haul.

Previously:

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) – Town Hall – Indianola, Iowa – October 20, 2019 (October 20, 2019)

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) – Town Hall Q and A – LGBTQ – Indianola, Iowa – October 20, 2019 (October 21, 2019)

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) – Town Hall Q and A – Climate – Indianola, Iowa – October 20, 2019 (October 21, 2019)

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) – Town Hall Q and A – Higher Education – Indianola, Iowa – October 20, 2019 (October 22, 2019)

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) – Medicare for All – Indianola, Iowa – October 20, 2019 (October 22, 2019)

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) – Closing Remarks – Indianola, Iowa – October 20, 2019 (October 22, 2019)

Secretary Julián Castro (D) Endorses Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) for President (January 6, 2020)

#PresidentWarren it is (February 17, 2020)

What access to $50,000,000,000.00 or $60,000,000,000.00 gets you

26 Wednesday Feb 2020

Posted by Michael Bersin in campaign finance

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

"Little" Tuesday, campaign finance, mail, Mike Bloomberg, missouri, president, Primary

The Missouri presidential preference primary will take place on Tuesday, March 10th, a week after “Super” Tuesday. Here in west central Missouri we’ve received our first piece of campaign mail.

Slick.

“…He’ll be president for the entire country…” Uh, that’s how it used to work.

It is a Democratic Party primary. But, since voters in Missouri don’t register by party, any voter can pull a Democratic Party primary ballot.

#PresidentWarren it is

17 Monday Feb 2020

Posted by Michael Bersin in media criticism, meta

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

caucus, Cory Booker, Democratic Party, Elizabeth Warren, Julián Castro, Kamala Harris, media criticism, meta, nomination, president, Primary

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) [2019 file photo].

I hate meta. And yet, here we have it.

We are an impatient people. We watch impatient old media. They create narratives because they are impatient. We listen to those tired narratives because we are so predictably impatient.

The old media hand wringing on the evening of the Iowa Caucus was a thing to behold. I spent my time watching their coverage screaming obscenities at the onscreen talking heads throughout the night. You’d have thought the cable networks had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on their brand new sets and on their ominous, yet vaguely patriotic, “Decide Something 2020” theme music. Instead, we got a really bad remake of the 1970 Mary Tyler Moore Show election night blizzard episode “The Snow Must Go On”. Watch the original, it’s hilarious.

Old media had to wait, what, seventy-two hours, for an approximation of the final results of a CAUCUS, the first voting event in a line of fifty-seven or so (states, commonwealths, territories). They wanted to declare an ultimate winner THAT VERY NIGHT. How dare the Iowa Democratic Party hold a caucus like that. You know, with (very public) formulas and arcane rules. Yawn.

If you’ve ever participated in a caucus they’re all like that. [Raises hand: Missouri, 1992.] Forget that it took months for an “official winner” of the Iowa republican caucus several cycles back.

The 2020 Iowa Caucus was the best thing to happen to presidential politics in America in a long time. Maybe 2020 will be a final stake in the heart of this money sucking, faux populist, abomination of true Democracy.

Caucuses are inherently undemocratic while simultaneously being small “d” democratic. You can’t “vote” at will over a period of your choosing in the hours between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. on the day of the caucus. You have to show up before they figuratively “lock the doors” at the appointed hour and then you have to stay for the duration to have your vote counted. Who does this cockamamie process exclude? I’ll wait.

Candidates spent tens of millions in Iowa. Several campaigns, with stellar candidates, ran out of resources and the approval of conventional wisdom long before the first vote was cast. That’s a tragedy for all of us. The candidates spent tens of millions of dollars in Iowa. Think about that.

It’s on us because we let this happen, election after election.

There’s a lot to be said for retail politics, the art and charm of presidential candidates getting out there and engaging voters one on one. Get over it. You don’t live there. There are a lot of Americans who don’t get that opportunity to engage with candidates who want to be their president, because somehow we’ve anointed two small states with a tiny percentage of voters (and low turnout) and with a minimal number of nominating delegates at stake to act as the final arbiters and gatekeepers of our viable and/or electable candidates for president.

Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, Julián Castro, to name a few, are no longer candidates. Tulsi Gabbard hangs on, still. I rest my case.

Senator Kamala Harris (D) [2019 file photo].

Senator Cory Booker (D) [2019 file photo]

Former HUD Secretary Julián Castro (D) [2019 file photo].

So, here we are, with eight or so candidates remaining in the Democratic Party presidential nominating process and old media chomping at the bit to create winners and losers narratives. The next two components of the process include another arcane caucus and an honest to goodness primary. We’ll see what happens. Old media will lazily build on their previous narratives or gaslight us all if they change them. Then it’s fifty-three or so primaries or caucuses to go. Get my drift?

In the meantime, a trend on social media:

Adam Best @adamcbest
#PresidentWarren is trending because despite her being 3rd in delegates, 3rd in most national polls and 2nd in endorsements, the media acts as if she doesn’t exist. So her supporters are dealing with this blackout by making sure voters know she’s still here and still kicking ass.
3:40 PM · Feb 17, 2020

#PresidentWarren

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) [2019 file photo].

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