Tuesday's election marked a major shift at the state level, with growth in legislatures and governorships. We can't rest on those laurels - we must build from there.
From the Washington Post:
After years of trying, Democrats expanded their influence in state capitols on Tuesday, flipping more than 300 state legislative seats while also claiming a majority of the nation’s attorney general offices.
The Democratic gains mark a significant turnaround for a party that had been losing clout in state legislatures for nearly a decade, allowing Republicans in many states to loosen restrictions on firearms, push through new voter-identification laws and weaken environmental regulations. Democrats had also ceded enormous power to Republicans to redraw congressional boundaries.
The victories — buoyed by an apparent net Democratic pickup of seven governorships — will also help fortify the party’s efforts to use states as a firewall against President Trump, including through coordinated lawsuits against the administration.
But we can't stop now. The GOP is going to try to take advantage of the usual low turnout in local election years to try to gain back lost ground. They know their rigged, gerrymandered districts are at stake in 2020. They're going to fight tooth and nail to preserve their undemocratic advantage in district maps.
What can we do? Harness our current momentum and networks and organization from this race. We must start - right now - organizing for 2019.
Not 2020.
2019.
Everything we care about is at stake in the statehouse elections in 2019. We win those, and we change the map. Win in 2019 and we level the playing field for a decade to come.
The bonus prize? We'll be organized and ready to trounce Trump and his cronies in 2020.