Let's cut to the chase here.

Last Tuesday’s victories in Ohio were overshadowed by the absolute shitshow we saw in Virginia, where an uninspiring white man with no message led Democrats into the depths of hell. We’ll send you an email with our full analysis of what happened there another time, but that’s not what this email is about.

Today, we are talking about the incredible, undeniably historic progressive wins we saw all across Ohio.

As much as last week showed us what Democrats should not be doing, it was also about what we should be doing.

In response to Tuesday’s wins, we are launching the Ohio Fund, where we will work precinct by precinct to show voters who we are and what we are fighting for. We are going to recruit young, diverse precinct captains across their state to organize their neighborhoods. We are going to strip it all back and rebuild, brick by brick.

Tuesday’s election was about the strength of progressives candidate of color tilling the soil at the ground level. This is a particularly difficult feat in Ohio, where centrist Democrats (who have lost almost every federal and statewide race since 2014) are more concerned about taking out progressive Democrats and winning insider political battles than linking arms to defeat Republicans.

These were David and Goliath wins that make our communities— and for our Party— stronger, but don’t take it from us. Here’s what the press had to say about it:

IN DAYTON, OHIO: "Democrats Darryl Fairchild and Shenise Turner-Sloss made some history this week by defeating two Dayton City Commission candidates who were endorsed by the Montgomery County Democratic Party. One unendorsed Democrat winning in these contests is rare, but two in the same election is unheard of in the modern era." - Dayton Daily News.

IN CLEVELAND, OHIO: Brent Larkin of Cleveland.com called Mayor-Elect Justin Bibb's win the most extraordinary he's seen in his nearly 52 years of following Cleveland politics.

IN LIMA, OHIO: Mayor-Elect Sharetta Smith pulled off a historic win, becoming the first woman and Black person to win the seat. The Mayor-Elect used her story to relate to voters, talking openly about struggling with debt and other issues that the majority of Americans face.

And it didn't stop in Ohio.

Pittsburgh saw a major shift too, with the historic election of Barrier To Entry endorsed Mayor-Elect Rep. Ed Gainey, who is the City’s first Black mayor. Rep. Gainey ran on a progressive platform centered around affordable housing and accountability with community policing.

Oh yeah— he made it across the finish line along with a slate of FIVE progressive judges. (HUGE!)

Are you sick of hearing us use the word “historic” yet?

At a time when we are losing nationally and statewide, we have to win and make hard moves to the left at the local level. Let's keep it real: Ohio isn’t going to be flipped blue in the next two years. It will take precinct-level movement building.

We have to do better than what we’ve been seeing in Columbus, Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Dayton, where working and low-income people struggle to find safe, affordable housing.

We have to show people who we are and what we are fighting for in our cities, where community members can see and touch the policies we choose to champion.

The candidates who won on Tuesday night are champions of local issues and advocate for strong safety nets and accountability at every turn. They talk about policing and affordable housing and environmental racism and blight and raising the minimum wage.

We can see the impacts of these victories up close, and now we know what we need to do to win the long game. And unlike the out of touch political consultants who promise us huge short-term victories and never deliver— we aren’t just going to say what you want to hear.

Building up the progressive ground game will require us to take back power from the old guards who run our County Parties like the mafia, who resort to using racist dog whistles to slander progressive candidates, who prevent meaningful primaries from taking place, and refuse to embrace new members of our coalition.

Those days are over, and a new day has begun.

Barrier To Entry PAC is an organization founded and run by strong Democrats. We know our leadership can better reflect our values, but it will require us to change. This is our fight. Join us.

DONATE NOW: [link removed]

Onward Together,
The Ohio Fund / Barrier to Entry PAC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BARRIER TO ENTRY PAC supports candidates and campaign staff from working class backgrounds as they carve their paths in the Democratic political space. We provide direct cash assistance for essential items like phones, cars, laptops, and living stipends -- which often times, these candidates and their campaigns don't have access to. We also serve as a resource for individual mentorship and training to ensure candidates and their staff feel supported and equipped to enter the political space.

Pitch in today to help provide necessary support and resources for working class candidates today! >>

DONATE: [[link removed]]


Barrier To Entry PAC
PO Box 6623
Cleveland, OH 44101
United States
If you believe you received this message in error or wish to no longer receive email from us, please unsubscribe: [link removed] .