A great way to get involved with Represent PA is to become a member of the Endorsement Committee. It’s one of the most important parts of the organization because it’s where applications for both incumbent and new candidates are reviewed, and investment decisions are made—which directly impacts the success of our strong women candidates who are on the frontlines of progressive change across the Commonwealth.
Applicants provide crucial information about their upcoming campaigns – endorsements received, money raised to date, staffing plans, and overall strategies for winning. They also respond to questions that demonstrate their positions on the issues that are important to Represent PA, including: reproduction rights and access to women’s healthcare; gender and racial equality; LGBTQ+ issues; public education; adopting a new minimum living wage; workers’ rights, balancing PA’s energy opportunities with environmental protection; gun violence prevention; criminal justice; community health and safety; and more.
Members of the endorsement committee are assigned multiple applications to read and rank. All applications are reviewed by multiple members so that the scoring is spread across several readers and varying points of view. Reviewing the applications provides each reader with insights about each candidate and the challenges they face in their districts. The committee also considers how likely each candidate’s district is to elect a Democrat by evaluating district demographics, registered voters by party, the numbers from the last election cycle, and challenges and opportunities specific to each district.
The committee then comes together to discuss the combined scoring of the applications along with the district-level data. These components are combined to focus the committee’s discussion on investments and how much money is available for candidates’ campaigns.
The experience is challenging and can be intense at times but making the phone calls to candidates after agreements have been reached is one of the most rewarding aspects of the entire process. There are squeals of delight, tears, and many words of thanks and gratitude.
Represent PA is proud to provide progressive women candidates with what is often their first four-figure check—it’s critical to provide early and consistent support of these candidates throughout their campaigns so that they have a chance to claim their seat at the table and be taken seriously as the strong, viable candidates that they are. Consider joining Represent PA’s Endorsement Committee and playing a key role in supporting the future changemakers of Pennsylvania.
What determines how much we can give the deserving women who run depends directly on how much money we can raise from our supporters. Please consider making one of our recurring contributions:
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Sustaining – $300 annually ($25 per month)
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Endorsement Circle – $1,200 annually ($100 per month)
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Leadership Circle – $2,400 annually ($200 per month)
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Represent Sponsor – $5,000 annually
We need your generous support to make change happen. A recurring donation of $100 per month qualifies you to take part in our exciting endorsement process and see for yourself why we work so hard to support our future leaders in Harrisburg.
