Today, democracyFIRST announced that 42 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, predominantly representing districts in the Presidential Battleground States, made the democracyFIRST Promise. The bipartisan list of incumbent members of Congress joins more than 300 candidates and elected officials from the most competitive Presidential swing states.
The democracyFIRST Promise campaign launched in July 2023 ahead of the Pennsylvania municipal elections and aims to restore the standards, expectations, and norms for elected officials and candidates seeking positions overseeing the administration and certification of elections. The Promise is centered on four non-partisan pro-democracy principles:
- Protect the right to vote for eligible citizens.
- Denounce threats or attempts to incite violence against political opponents or election workers.
- Stop the spread of falsehoods and misinformation about the electoral process.
- Accept and certify the final election results according to the law after all ballots are counted.
Today’s announcement includes the following incumbent House members:
Rep. Mary Peltola (AK-AL); Rep. Greg Stanton (AZ- 04); Rep. Josh Harder (CA-09); Rep. Julia Brownley (CA-26); Rep. Yadira Caraveo (CO-08); Rep. Nikki Budzinski (IL-13); Rep. Eric Sorensen (IL-17); Rep. Jared Golden (ME-02); Rep. Hillary Scholten (MI-03); Rep. Debbie Dingell (MI-06); Rep. Haley Stevens (MI-11); Rep. Angie Craig (MN-02); Rep. Don Davis (NC-01); Rep. Deborah Ross (NC-02); Rep. Don Bacon (NE-02); Rep. Chris Pappas (NH-01); Rep. Annie Kuster (NH-02); Rep. Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11); Rep. Melanie Stansbury (NM-01); Rep. Gabe Vasquez (NM-02); Rep. Teresa Ledger Fernandez (NM-03); Rep. Dina Titus (NV-01); Rep. Susie Lee (NV-03); Rep. Steven Horsford (NV-04); Rep. Mike Lawler (NY-17); Rep. Pat Ryan (NY-18); Rep. Greg Landsman (OH-01); Rep. Marcy Kaptur (OH-09); Rep. Emilia Sykes (OH-13); Rep. David Joyce (OH-14); Rep. Val Hoyle (OR-04); Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (OR-05); Rep. Andrea Salinas (OR-06); Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01); Rep. Brendan Boyle (PA-02); Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05); Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (PA-06); Rep. Susan Wild (PA-07); Rep. Matt Cartwright (PA-08); Rep. Chris Deluzio (PA-17); Rep. Colin Allred (TX-32); Rep. Marie Glusenkamp Perez (WA-03); and Rep. Mark Pocan (WI-02).
In a Friday op-ed published in The Hill, “Making a bipartisan commitment to respect this year’s election results,” Reps. Jared Golden (D-ME-2), Marie Glusenkamp Perez (D-WA-03), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA-01) and Don Bacon (R-NE-02) wrote:
“If we can’t come back to Washington next year in agreement on the fundamental ideas that must guide our service to the country, we’ll be in real danger of no longer having a country to serve. So we call on our colleagues of both parties to join us in making the democracyFIRST Promise.” – Reps. Jared Golden (D-ME-2), Marie Glusenkamp Perez (D-WA-03), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA-01) and Don Bacon (R-NE-02).
The announcement today builds on the success of the democracyFIRST Promise campaign in Pennsylvania’s 2023 Municipal Elections, where more than 100 county commission candidates made the commitment ahead of Election Day. Earlier this year, two candidates elected in Pennsylvania, one Democrat, and one Republican, detailed their commitment to the values laid out in the democracyFIRST Promise in the Bulwark, which can be read here.
democracyFIRST is mobilizing the ideologically diverse pro-democracy coalition to confront and defeat authoritarianism and restore the political consensus for the central pro-democracy principles underpinning our electoral process. democracyFIRST’s advocacy and accountability programs aim to identify, isolate, and defeat politicians who threaten the future of our democracy and republic.
“democracyFIRST’s national campaign will help restore the political consensus for our democracy, confront threats of political violence and election supervision, and support bi-partisan leaders who are committed to protecting the future of our constitutional republic,” said Jordan Wood, Executive Director of democracyFIRST.
Recent polling released by democracyFIRST, from across the Battleground states of Arizona, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, found significant voter opposition to candidates who tried to overturn the 2020 election. The overwhelming majority of voters in the survey also refuse to support candidates who won’t agree to the pro-democracy principles outlined in the Promise. The results are particularly pronounced among white, college-educated independents, a group of swing voters that will be decisive in the competitive elections in November.
- When asked which of the following two statements comes closest to their own view, “I would never vote for a congressional candidate who voted to overturn the 2020 election result” OR “I would be willing to vote for a congressional candidate who voted to overturn the 2020 election result,” 59% of voters (66% of independents) said the first and only 41% (34% of independents) said the second. The intensity gap was even more defined, with 42% saying the first statement was “much closer to their own view” and only 16% saying that about the second statement.
- The survey also found that 72% of all voters and 88% of white, college-educated independents said they could never support a candidate who disagreed with the pro-democracy provisions outlined in the Promise. Only 28% of all voters in the survey (12% of white, college-educated, independents) said they would still consider supporting a candidate opposed to these provisions in the democracyFIRST Promise.
- Respondents across AZ, MI, and PA were asked to pick two issues from a list of thirteen that are the most personally motivating for them to vote in 2024. The most motivating issue overall was “securing the southern border and cracking down on illegal immigration” at 34%, with “creating good paying jobs and improving the economy” just behind at 33%. “Preserving democracy and the rule of law” was third at 27%, and “restoring reproductive rights nationwide” was fourth at 22%. If you only consider white, college-educated, independent respondents, a demographic democracyFIRST oversampled for this survey, “preserving democracy and the rule of law” ranks as the number one most motivating issue at 40%, with immigration second at 38%, and the economy third at 28%.
###
