NEW YORK - Today, Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund released its latest round of endorsements of Moms Demand Action volunteers running for office across the country - underscoring the growing power of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action volunteers as candidates for office themselves.
"Moms Demand Action volunteers have a proven track record of fighting tooth and nail to keep their communities safe, so it's no surprise that candidates who began as volunteers are running strong campaigns," said John Feinblatt, President of Everytown for Gun Safety. "It's a testament to the growing power of the gun safety movement that more and more Moms Demand Action volunteers are making the leap from advocating for gun safety laws to actually writing them."
"In the face of gun extremist agendas, voters are increasingly looking for leaders who will champion their safety. These remarkable Moms Demand Action volunteers-turned-candidates are answering that call," said Angela Ferrell-Zabala, executive director of Moms Demand Action. "We are incredibly proud of their decision to run for office and pave the way for a future where our communities can thrive without the threat of gun violence."
The full list of candidates endorsed today and the office they are running for is available below:
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Alaska
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Janice Park, State Senator, District F
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Arkansas
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Gayatri Agnew, Bentonville City Council Ward 1, Position 2
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Arizona
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Haley Creighton, State Senator, District 07
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Alan Smith, State Representative, District 15
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Aaron Márquez, State Representative, District 05
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Anthony Garcia, Flagstaff City Council
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California
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Alison Emery, Carlsbad Unified School District Board of Trustees, Area 2
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Diana Honig, Contra Costa Community College District, Ward 2
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Colorado
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Sonya Jaquez Lewis, State Senator, District 17
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Stephanie Vigil, State Representative, District 16
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Liz Rosenbaum, State Representative, District 21
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Connecticut
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Kim Becker, State Representative, District 62
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Michelle Embree Ku, State Representative, District 106
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Florida
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Christopher Proia, State Senator, District 33
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Allison Tant, State Representative, District 09
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Rachel Grage, State Representative, District 16
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Jennifer "Rita" Harris, State Representative, District 44
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Jay Shooster, State Representative, District 91
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Robin Bartleman, State Representative, District 103
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Rebecca Thompson, Broward County School Board, District 2
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Debra Hixon, Broward County School Board, Countywide At-Large, Seat 9
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Diana Shoemaker, Manatee County Commission, District 3
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Deb Henry, Marco Island City Council
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Max Tuchman, Miami-Dade County School Board, District 7
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Ellen Baker, Northern Palm Beach County Improvement District, Seat 4
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Stephanie Vanos, Orange County Public Schools, School Board, District 6
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Francesca Wernisch, Palm Beach County School Board, District 1
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Cynthia Murphy-Salomone, Parkland City Commission, District 3
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Louis Reinstein, Plantation City Council, Group 5
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Liz Barker, Sarasota County School Board, District 2
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Illinois
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Lynn LaPlante, DuPage County Board, District 4
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Michigan
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Angela Demas, Meridian Township Clerk
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Eli Savit, Washtenaw County Prosecuting Attorney
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Allie Suffety, Ypsilanti Community Schools Board of Education
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Minnesota
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Laurie Wolfe, State Representative, District 37A
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Lara Bergman, Minneapolis Board of Education, District 6
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Jason Greenberg, Robbinsdale City Council, Ward 2
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Julie Strahan, Roseville City Council
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Oregon
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Beach Pace, Hillsboro City Mayor
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Vermont
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Thomas Chittenden, State Senator, Chittenden Southeast District
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Erin Brady, State Representative, Chittenden-2 District
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Kate McCann, State Representative, Washington-4 District
Everytown for Gun Safety Victory Fund launched "Demand a Seat," a program to train grassroots volunteers and gun violence survivors to take the next step in their advocacy efforts by running for office and working on campaigns to elect gun sense candidates in 2021. Since 2017, hundreds of Moms Demand Action volunteer leaders have run for elected office and more than two hundred have won seats - from town council and school board to U.S. Congress. In 2023, 162 volunteers ran for office and 96 won their races. More information on Demand a Seat can be found here.