About Silver Spring Progressive Action
Who We Are
We are neighbors in the Silver Spring area and nearby, who are outraged about the abuses of the Trump Administration and those in Congress who continue to enable it. We organized in 2019 and acted in the 2019 elections for NC-09 (lost), the Virginia legislature (both houses flipped!), and the Kentucky governorship (flipped!). We are determined to do our part for electoral change in 2020. Our own area is pretty blue, and we aim to help like-minded folks around the country flip and keep districts and states.
It’s easy to get overwhelmed – to feel like there’s a never-ending to-do list, or to wonder what one person can do. We are 100% guilt-free! We want to pull people in and to mutually support and inspire, but not to overburden. We’re all busy, we all gravitate to things we like to do and avoid those we don’t – but we can all do something. And we’ll get to know each other better in the process.
Our Goals
Our overall goals are to:
• Keep the House
• Flip the Senate
• Take the Presidency
• Flip state legislatures, especially those meaningful for national purposes
• Reinforce Democrats in Western Maryland and Eastern Shore
• Get to know our neighbors and other like-minded people in the Silver Spring area
Our goals for 2020 are to:
• Keep the House by defending vulnerable Democratic House members
• Flip the Senate
• Take the Presidency
• Flip important state legislatures – Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and possibly others
More About those Goals…
We want to change the country’s political power framework away from hatred and fear, and towards justice, equity, and compassion. At this time in our country’s history, we must strengthen Democratic representation and disempower Trump and the Republican party that enables him. We work in partnership with local, and sometimes other, groups focused on the same goals.
We are focused solely on elections. Many of us are also involved, elsewhere, in the important work of policy advocacy, direct action, and ensuring the safety of the most vulnerable. We’ll publicize those issues, but our actions are focused on changing who’s in power.
We target our work so that our time is spent on things with the greatest chance of moving the needle.
• We engage in general elections only, not primaries, because the local people know their local politics best – who’s best on the issues and who has the best chance of winning.
• We target candidates in elections that are toss-ups and near toss-ups – candidates who need a boost (not a miracle) to get over the top.
• Where possible, we focus on states with multiple races, where there will be synergy in strengthening the Democratic ticket.
• We don’t focus on sure bets or hopeless causes, no matter how much we personally love or are inspired by a particular candidate.
• For fundraising targets, we take an even closer look, focusing on those contests where additional money can make a significant difference. We don’t raise funds for candidates who are the most or least likely to win, or who already have, or are likely to get, sufficient funding from others.
What We Do
We have come together to take meaningful action, not just to educate and discuss. We’re an energetic bunch. We engage in a range of actions, depending on what candidates need and where our energies and abilities lie, including:
• Voter registration – on-location and remote via letters
• Postcard and letter campaigns for candidates and GOTV
• Textbanking for candidates and GOTV
• Phonebanking for candidates and GOTV
• Canvassing
• Peer-to-peer fundraising
• Social media in support of all of the above
Our onsite activities are often within a day’s drive of Silver Spring Maryland – which means Pennsylvania, Virginia, and, when needed, Maryland itself. But we also take longer overnight trips, such as to North Carolina and further. We also work remotely on more distant campaigns.