Hey there. My name is Scott Solomon and I am an intern on the campaign of Jon Hoadley for State Representative. I love writing and I wanted to learn more about political communication, so Jon put me in charge of keeping the blogging community up to date with the campaign. I will be making weekly blog posts about what we’re doing and ask for your ideas on how we can improve.
But first, I should introduce myself. I am a high school student from Kalamazoo, Michigan. I go to Portage Central High School, and I participate in many extracurriculars there like Business Professionals of America, the school newspapers, and forensics. During the spring I play lacrosse for Portage Central. In college I hope to study economics and political science.
I have been very interested in politics my entire life, whether it be watching the news, keeping up with current events, or just debating with my friends.
Since I cannot vote yet, one of the ways that I can make a difference is by becoming involved with local work.
The other question you might be asking is, “why am I working for Jon’s campaign?” I live in district 61 and he’s running in district 60, so Jon isn’t even running in my home district. I chose to work on Jon’s campaign because I want to advocate for progressive change and legislation, and so does he.
Jon Hoadley is part of the next generation of progressive candidates who believe in smart campaigning. Jon understands the importance of education, and as a high school student, I see how the state’s budget cuts have been detrimental to our education system. These cuts lead to larger class sizes and less classes offered, which are both detrimental to a high school education.
By cutting funding from education, our state legislature is taking away from the future of our students. The same students who face the repercussions of these irresponsible budget cuts are the future of our state. Michigan needs extremely innovative young minds, the type of mind that leads to the next job creators, and we cannot accomplish this feat by harming our education system.
I also strongly stand by Jon in his fight for LGBT equality. No one should be discriminated against for any reason, and that includes sexual orientation and gender identity. It is important that Michigan makes the decision, like many states have already, to pass marriage equality laws and amend our Elliott Larsen Civil Rights Act to include LGBT citizens. Jon is young, but has been a leader in the fight for LGBT equality for over a decade, making him a natural fit for me.
Besides agreeing with Jon’s stances on the issues, I am of the age where I have essentially grown up with the internet and new media. I see all of the opportunities these new technologies afford a modern campaign. By working on a campaign that understands the power of telling our stories, I am able to utilize my skills in these areas for the campaign. I can bring my knowledge of social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, as well as help the campaign venture into different, more unconventional forms of media, like blog posts and weekly YouTube videos.
Jon Hoadley for State Representative is a progressive, extremely well run campaign, with very solid values. Even though I cannot vote yet, I still want to make a difference. Jon is more than just a vote - he’s an advocate who will be the voice for progressive causes in the state of Michigan. I am excited to keep supporters updated with the campaign through my weekly blog posts during the campaign.
So help me out. In the comments below, please let me know what should I be talking about next week? And you can follow along with the campaign on Facebook, Twitter, and by visiting our website.
Happy Election year!