Today marks the close of the 2022 primary season in Texas. By the end of the night, the November ballot will be set and candidates will begin the sprint to the November Midterm Election. It’s been six months since Blue Horizon Texas launched last November. We began with an idea and a plan—a conviction that no one who steps up to run for office should have to do it alone, even when the odds are stacked against them… and a vision of a support network and real resources for candidates running in the toughest districts. In the six months since we launched, Blue Horizon Texas has created:
A thriving online community serving over 50 candidates for state and local office, from electrical co-op board to Texas Comptroller
Two popular webinar series, with four installments of Former Candidate Conversations and six Campaign Nuts & Bolts offerings, with more scheduled for the coming months
A burgeoning volunteer network of committed former candidates, party leaders, and activists offering their support in social media, graphic and web design, research, messaging, voter registration, field organizing, candidate recruitment, and more
And Blue Horizon candidates look like the Texans they are running to represent! Our 2022 Texas candidates are:
>50% women
46% people of color
21% LGBTQI+
47% parents of minor children
40% age 40 or younger
They come from Odessa, Bastrop, Ingleside, Wichita Falls, Killeen, Plano, Baytown, Frisco, Waco, New Braunfels, Temple, Comfort, Little Elm, Rockwall, Johnson City, Round Rock, and Pearland. They are running in some of the most heavily Republican districts in the state and taking a stand against the hateful rhetoric, book bans, targeting of transgender and immigrant children, and anti-science, anti-choice, and anti-Democracy stances of the farthest right of the GOP.
Blue Horizon candidates may be the only voice in their community speaking up to defend abortion rights or to fight for fair wages, affordable healthcare, and a livable planet. At the same time, because they are connected to their rural communities, they become essential advocates who understand and speak to the priorities of rural Texans.
They are out on the front lines in rural communities articulating solutions for fixing the power grid, defending our public schools, and responding to the climate crisis. They are candidates who in most cases won’t raise a lot of money or get a lot of attention, but they will register voters, gather data, and inspire the next generation of candidates. Their campaigns remind us that Democrats and progressives live everywhere, including our exurban and rural communities.
Blue Horizon is providing essential information many of these candidates need to correctly file for office, prepare campaign finance reports, speak authoritatively on policy issues, and build coalitions so that, win or lose, their presence and impact will be felt in November and in the years to come.
We have exciting plans for the coming months, and a strategic roadmap for bigger successes leading up to the 2024 election. Look for announcements coming soon relating to:
Our on-the-ground, coordinated candidate recruitment efforts with national and state partners like Run for Something and Texas Blue Action Democrats that will empower current candidates, party leaders, and other activists to activate other local progressive leaders to run for office in their communities
Opening our candidate community to judicial and Congressional candidates after the runoff
A matching challenge grant of $20,000 that will fuel our work through the summer
New sister organizations in the growing Blue Horizon ecosystem that will allow us to have even deeper and broader impact, from civic engagement to direct candidate support
As we turn the corner to the sprint, and marathon, to November, we ask you to support these inspirational Texans who are brave enough to step up to the plate and run for office where no one else would. Please support our efforts at Blue Horizon to make their campaigns as effective and successful as possible.