Our Candidates

Elizabeth Warren demonstrated her fighting spirit long before becoming the first woman Senator from Massachusetts. In the Senate, she's pushed bank regulators to do their jobs, and fights for vital priorities like post office banking, a new Glass-Steagall, expanding Social Security, and debt-free college.

Mandela Barnes a Milwaukee native, was born in the city’s poorest and the nation’s most incarcerated zip code. He was elected to the state assembly at the age of 25, where he championed working family economic and criminal justice reform issues. He’s also traveled the country helping other state legislators fight back against the regressive corporate ALEC agenda. Now he’s running to be the next Senator from Wisconsin.

Charles Booker in 2018, Charles was elected to the Kentucky House of Representatives, becoming the youngest Black state legislator in nearly 90 years. As a legislator, Rep. Booker fought for the people: common-sense gun safety reform, lower prescription drug prices, expanded voting rights, stronger labor unions, and for racial justice. He is a lifelong advocate for local businesses and working people.

Sen. Ed Markey (U.S. Senate - Massachusetts) was the first senator to endorse a Green New Deal, the first senator to reject campaign cash from the Fraternal Order of Police that opposes reform, and one of the first members of Congress ever to fight for Net Neutrality. He’s facing a September 1 primary against Joe Kennedy III, who is running for no reason whatsoever. Markey is a lifelong progressive fighter who has been endorsed by Elizabeth Warren and AOC.

Becca Balint was elected to the State Senate in 2014, where she became the first woman and first openly-gay senator to serve as President Pro Tempore. She delivered on raising the minimum wage, paid family and medical leave, Vermont’s first gun violence prevention legislation, increased affordable housing, and the nation’s strongest protections for reproductive rights. Before running for office, Becca Balint spent most of her career as a middle school teacher and was a rank-and-file member of the National Education Association. If elected, Becca Balint will be Vermont’s first woman and first openly-gay representative in Congress.

Jamaal is a public school teacher and principal who founded the highest-ranked middle school in New York for improving students’ test scores. He has a strong sense that America’s families are struggling with an emergency of high rent, high debt, and high health care costs — and he’s running to do something about it. He’s running in a primary against a Democratic incumbent, Eliot Engel, and recent polls show him rising in popularity. He’s endorsed by Working Families Party, Justice Democrats, and New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams.

As an Austin City Councilmember and son of Mexican immigrants, Greg Casar is grounded in his community and has a demonstrated track record of fighting for affordable housing, criminal justice reform, and to raise the minimum wage.

When Texas Republicans tried to strip away voting rights, Jasmine fought back as one of the lead architects of the Texas Democrats’ quorum break. She helped convince her colleagues to head to D.C. to push for federal voting rights legislation and shine a national spotlight on the Republican effort to disenfranchise voters.

As a County Commissioner and County Judge, Veronica took on the local police chief when he called Black Lives Matter “a radical hate group,” and sued the state of Texas over a bill that would have allowed local police officers to become de facto border patrol agents. She also led the effort to build public health clinics in El Paso, and has been visiting detention centers where children have been separated from their parents.

Maxwell Alejandro Frost is part of a new generation of civil rights activists and has been fighting on the frontlines for justice, where he's been beaten by cops, tear-gassed, and jailed for those efforts. He's experienced police abuse first hand, seen his community ravaged by gun violence, and understands the way that working people and people of color are unjustly marginalized and left behind by our society. As Organizing Director at March for Our Lives, one of the largest youth political movements in the country, he led an ambitious voter turnout program that helped drive record numbers of young people to the polls, helping to hold the House, and win a Democratic Senate, and Presidency.

Deb will be the first Native American woman in Congress. She's an attorney and activist, running for Medicare-for-All, free childcare and pre-K, fair scheduling legislation, a national paid family leave program, net neutrality, and so much more!

Pramila has spent the last 25 years as a Seattle organizer and activist — leading the charge for a $15 minimum wage, founding an immigrant rights’ organization, and passing legislation to help rape survivors. In 2016, she was elected to succeed retiring Congressman Jim McDermott, a huge progressive champion.

Kahele is a state senator and former nonprofit director running for Congress in Hawaii’s 2nd district. In the senate, he has proven himself to be a champion of the environment, including fighting corporations to protect public water rights and other natural resources. He has also worked to lower the cost of tuition and textbooks for Hawaii students. His platform includes Medicare for All, a Green New Deal, and a $15 minimum wage. This district is an open blue seat, due to the decision of current Representative Tulsi Gabbard not to run for re-election. His primary is August 8.

Summer Lee is a Pennsylvania state legislator and dedicated organizer, activist, and advocate for social justice. Since taking office, Summer has been a voice for people across the district – championing initiatives that support sustainable jobs, environmental responsibility, police accountability, and gender and racial equity. She is a tireless advocate for workers’ rights, union protections, and the fight for a liveable wage.

Mike is a clean energy entrepreneur and non-profit director. He believes strongly in the power of clean energy to create jobs, and will also fight for Medicare for All, debt-free college, and a $15 minimum wage. Mike says he is proud to be part of the Elizabeth Warren wing of American politics! He’s running to take on Darrell Issa, one of the most vulnerable Republicans in Congress, and he’s been participating in local protests outside Issa’s office each week — and then inviting protestors back to his office to call voters! We believe in this type of grassroots organizing, and the way he’s turning the Resistance into electoral power.

Jamie McLeod-Skinner is a no-nonsense engineer, attorney, and former union member running in a primary against Democratic rep Kurt Schrader, one of the worst of the Blue Dog Democrats. Her mom drove a school bus and taught special ed, and picked fruit in the summers, and she hasn’t forgotten her roots. She’s drawing contrasts with Schrader on Medicare drug price negotiation, support for Build Back Better (particularly its climate provisions), holding corporations accountable for climate change, clean water and public forest protection, student debt relief, banning congressional stock trading, raising the federal minimum wage, voting for the PRO act, and not taking corporate PAC money. One thing that was particularly shocking…Kurt Schrader didn’t support impeaching Trump for Jan. 6, and called the impeachment a “lynching.” (!!) The primary is May 17.

Alexandria received national attention when she beat longtime incumbent Joe Crowley in a primary, and since then she's ignited a movement. She is a proud Democratic Socialist, running on a strong platform of single payer healthcare, a federal jobs guarantee, end to private prisons, and campaign finance reform.

Ilhan emigrated from Somalia with her family when she was 8 years old. After spending 4 years in a refugee camp, they arrived in Minneapolis. Years later, she worked for the City Council as a policy analyst, where she fought for paid parental leave for municipal employees, restricted the use of pesticides in the city, and formed a task force to examine pollution’s impact on communities of color. She’s now a 36-year-old mother of three, a state representative — and the first Somali-American Muslim woman to hold public office in the United States. (She’s also a past PCCC Champion, and alumni of our training program!) She’s running for the open blue Congressional seat in Minnesota vacated by Keith Ellison, who is running for Attorney General of Minnesota.

Katie has spent twenty years fighting Wall Street and powerful interests as an attorney and consumer advocate. She was one of the first to sound the alarm about the big foreclosure crisis, and served as California’s watchdog on the banks. She even wrote a book with Senator Elizabeth Warren! Katie is taking on Mimi Walters, one of the most vulnerable Republicans in Congress.

The daughter of Guatemalan immigrants, Delia Ramirez’s focus on bold, transformative solutions to homelessness and poverty is inspired by her childhood experience volunteering at a soup kitchen. As a nonprofit executive, community organizer, and Illinois state legislator, she has consistently prioritized housing insecurity. Delia Ramirez passed the COVID-19 Emergency Housing Act to protect renters from eviction and homeowners from foreclosure, and secured funding for a tenant and landlord pandemic relief fund.

Before his election to the U.S. House of Representatives, Jamie led the Maryland State Senate's fight for marriage equality, ending the death penalty, passing criminal justice reform, and opposing corporate spending in political campaigns. A former law professor, he’s an expert on the Constitution, voting rights, and gerrymandering.

Rashida was born and raised in Detroit, the daughter of working-class immigrants and the oldest of 14 kids. She became the first Muslim woman ever to serve in the Michigan legislature -- where she fought predatory lenders, big polluters, and big corporations. She also fought for free health clinics and Meals on Wheels. Rashida talks about “taking on corporate billionaires, crony capitalists, industrial polluters, and government officials who would prefer to be unaccountable.” She’s running for an open Democratic seat.

Jocelyn is running for Michigan Secretary of State to protect voting rights, especially during the all-important elections in 2020. She is also running on a smart platform of the “30 minute guarantee” — pledging that no one will have to wait more than 30 minutes to renew their drivers' license, register their vehicle, or cast their ballot. Oh yeah, and she's a former Elizabeth Warren student! She’s focused on running a strong race to beat the Republican.