It’s Time to Come Together

11 hours ago

Tharon Johnson,

There’s an old adage in politics: “Republicans will look for any reason to vote for someone; Democrats will look for any reason not to.” In the almost 30 years I’ve been working in politics, that has been true more often than not. In almost every election cycle in which I have been involved, Republicans have had by far the most vicious primaries while Democrats tend to keep their criticisms a little more respectful.

When the primaries pass, however, the script usually flips. No matter how nasty or personal the insults get, Republicans let bygones be bygones and rally around their nominees. At their core, they are united in their mission to cut taxes for the rich, deport undocumented immigrants, eliminate women’s rights to choose what’s best for their body and return the country to what they consider its golden era, the 1950s and early ‘60s.

We are seeing the consequences of conservative unity every day. Roe v. Wade is no longer the law of the land. Tariffs have driven up the price of household goods, leaving many people unable to afford necessities. American citizens have been killed on our streets by federal agents. In short, our government has largely collapsed into chaos with Republicans holding every lever of power on the federal level.

Decades of Republican control in Georgia haven’t served us much better. U.S. News and World Report ranks Georgia in the bottom half of states when it comes to opportunity, education and healthcare, three crucial factors to leading a happy, prosperous life. What we need now, more than anything, is for Democrats to take control of the wheel.

While Republicans fixate on culture war issues and loyalty to President Donald Trump, Democrats up and down the ballot are offering real solutions. From universal childcare and expanding Medicaid to transformative investments in public education, we have an opportunity to begin building a Georgia that we can all believe in. Whether you’re white or Black, urban or rural, rich or poor, all of us benefit from lifting up millions of struggling families.

But first we have to win, and that means we have to vote. We must implement a base-plus strategy to win the general election. Electability is paramount. There are a lot of candidates on the Democratic primary ballot, from governor all the way down to state House. Many of those races are competitive, which means a lot of us won’t see our personal first choice on the ballot come November.

That might be disappointing, but it must not become disengaging. The stakes are too high for a single one of us who believes in economic mobility, housing affordability, healthcare access or women’s rights to stay home. No matter which Democrat is on which ballot, whether a moderate, progressive or somewhat conservative, I guarantee that their vision for Georgia does more to empower hardworking, everyday Georgians than that of their Republican opponent.

In short, our government has largely collapsed into chaos with Republicans holding every lever of power on the federal level.

Just look at what we are up against this year. Republicans are running on some of the most divisive, destructive platforms I have ever seen. Cutting billions of dollars out of the state budget and gutting what few resources we provide is just the start. Republicans truly believe that “stopping woke ideology” and “keeping Georgia Sharia free” are at the top of our priority list.

Woke ideology isn’t keeping nearly 500,000 Georgia children stuck in poverty and Sharia law isn’t responsible for approximately a million people going without health insurance. If Democrats don’t get out and vote, we’re going to be stuck with leaders who will use their newfound power to make their lives easier and the rest of ours much, much harder.

I understand why some people have gotten tired of hearing “vote blue no matter who.” Plenty of people have legitimate concerns and disagreements with some Democrats on the ballot, myself included. However, at a time when most Republicans support Trump’s push to disenfranchise as many (primarily Democratic) voters as possible, now is not the time to skip an election because your favorite candidate didn’t make it to the final ballot.

We are facing the same choice on every single ballot line this year – democracy vs. dictatorship. Construction vs. destruction. And most fundamentally, freedom vs. fascism.

Voting for someone isn’t an endorsement of everything they say and do, nor is it the ultimate expression of our civic duty. Right now, it’s about one thing – winning. Winning for our families, winning for our rights and winning for democracy. And I don’t know about you, but I think those things are worth voting for.