Theresa Greenfield – IA
Theresa Greenfield is running for the U.S. Senate against the incumbent Joni Ernst in an increasingly close election. She describes herself as a “businesswoman, a mom, and a scrappy farm kid.” She grew up on a family farm, helping with the family crop-dusting business. In the 1980s farm crisis, her family was forced to sell everything, and they never farmed again. With the help of financial aid and multiple part-time jobs, she put herself through school. At age 24, Theresa was married and four months pregnant, when her husband was killed in an accident at his job as a union electrical worker. She credits Social Security survivor benefits, along with her husband’s union pension, as helping her family stay out of poverty. Greenfield went on to obtain a degree in urban planning, and became the president of a Des Moines-based commercial real-estate firm.
Greenfield’s experiences have shaped her campaign message. She is committed to protecting Social Security and Medicare as public safety nets, investing in higher education and job training including the funding of Pell grants, supporting trade that benefits Iowa farmers, and investing in the state’s workforce. Greenfield lives with her husband Steve in Des Moines and together they have four grown children, including a son serving in the U.S. Army.
Cal Cunningham – NC
Cal Cunningham is running for U.S. Senate against the incumbent Thom Tillis. He grew up in the small town of Lexington, NC, earned his undergraduate and law degrees at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and now lives in Raleigh with his wife and two teenage children. Cunningham was elected to the State Senate at the age of 27, representing Davidson, Rowan, and Iredell Counties. As state senator, he fought for smaller class sizes, higher teacher pay, and investments in early childhood education and the state’s university and community college system. Following 9/11, Cunningham volunteered to join the U.S. Army Reserve and has served three active duty tours, including overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan. He continues to serve in the rank of Lieutenant Colonel with an Army Reserve unit. In 2013 Cunningham joined the environmental services company WasteZero as vice president, government affairs and general counsel. WasteZero helps support pay-as-you-throw waste reduction systems.
One of Cunningham’s priorities is lower cost, accessible health care, including protection of Medicare, expansion of Medicaid in the state, and a public health insurance option. He also supports a more equitable economy and living wage for workers, investment in infrastructure, increased investment in public education, investment in a clean energy economy, and campaign finance reform. As a veteran, Cunningham is committed to expanding educational and job opportunities for returning veterans and ensuring that the Department of Veterans Affairs runs efficiently to provide veterans with the support they need.
Sara Gideon – ME
Sara Gideon is a proud mom, wife, daughter, sister and Speaker of Maine’s House of Representatives. She got her start in public service while serving on the Freeport Town Council before being elected to four terms in the Maine Legislature. Sara has focused on listening to the concerns of Mainers and using her office to improve the lives of Maine families. Under Governors of both parties, Sara has shown an ability to deliver results while standing up for Democratic values. She is running against Susan Collins who was elected in 1996, having pledged that she would only serve two terms.
Sara has stood up for a woman’s right to choose, supports expanding access to affordable health care, and has championed job training legislation to increase economic opportunity across the state. EMILY’s List, Planned Parenthood Action Fund, the League of Conservation Voters and the Maine AFL-CIO have all endorsed Sara’s candidacy. Sara is a dedicated and proven public servant who could make history as Maine’s first Democratic woman to serve in the Senate.
Steve Bullock – MT
Steve Bullock is the two-term Governor of Montana. Born and raised in Montana, Steve went to public school and graduated from Helena High School in 1984. Now, Steve and his wife Lisa are raising their own family in Helena, where they live with their three children.
Steve has spent his life fighting for Montana families to make sure all Montanans have a fair shot at a better future. Before he entered public service, Steve worked as a consumer protection, small business, and labor lawyer and helped lead the fight to raise Montana’s minimum wage. Steve was elected Attorney General in 2009 and fought the corrupting influence of money in politics by bringing the first legal challenge to the landmark campaign finance case known as Citizens United all the way to the Supreme Court. He also fought to protect access to public lands and streams.
John Hickenlooper -CO
John Hickenlooper was trained as a geologist, but after losing his job, he opened the first brewpub in Colorado in a then-neglected warehouse district in Denver. He subsequently started seven more small businesses, employing hundreds of Coloradans. As a small-business owner, John was active in the local community and ran for office, serving as mayor of Denver from 2003-2011 and as governor of Colorado from 2011 to 2019. As Mayor of Denver, John worked to expand mass transit, reduce crime, tackle climate change, and improve educational opportunities for Denver students. As Governor, he focused on job creation and brought people together across the aisle to pass pioneering anti-pollution climate change measures and landmark gun safety laws, and to expand Medicaid to nearly 400,000 Coloradans.
In the Senate, he plans to work on lowering health care and prescription drug costs, keeping families safe from gun violence, and protecting the state’s public lands while combating climate change. He defeated his primary challenger, Andrew Romanoff and will face Cory Gardner, who is closely aligned with Donald Trump and is considered very vulnerable.