Run For Something
Rásarupplýsingar
Run For Something
Amanda Litman is the co-founder and executive director of Run for Something (and the author of a book by the same name) -- since launching in 2017, RFS has recruited 60,000 people to run for local office across the country. Every Tuesday, you'll meet some of the RFS candidates (and newly elected pub...
Nýlegir þættir
66 þættir
How to Run for Office
In the final episode of the Run for Something podcast, Amanda and co-founder Ross Morales Rocketto dig in on how to run for office. They answer questi...
How Elsa Mejia Won in a Conservative Town & Became the First Indigenous City Councilmember in Madera, CA
First, a programming note: Next week will be the last episode of this podcast! Then, a conversation with Elsa Mejia, an Indigenous Mexican woman, bili...
Amber Sellers is the first Black woman elected to the Lawrence City Commission
In November, Amber Sellers became the first Black woman elected to the Lawrence City Commission in Kansas. At first, Amber didn't think she'd be the o...
Yes, We Elect Coroners: Sophia Garcia-Jackson in Chester County, PA
In around 1300 counties across the country, we still elect coroners. Run for Something has worked with a handful of them over the years -- Sophia Garc...
How to Keep Georgia Blue: A conversation with Gwinnett County Commissioners Ben Ku and Nicole Love Hendrickson
I talk with two members of the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners in Georgia -- Ben Ku and Chairwoman Nicole Love Hendrickson. Ben won his seat in...
Brianna Lennon explains what county clerk actually does & why you might want to be one
First, a quick run-through of how previous guests did on Election Day, and some thoughts on VA & NJ. Then: We talk with Boone County Clerk Brianna Len...
Jasmine Crockett is not backing down from fighting for Texans
First, a quick rundown of some of the previous guests who are on the ballot today -- some of the 271 Run for Something folks up for a vote! Then, a co...
If Kelly Krout Can Run a Family With 7 Kids, She Can Help Lead Arkansas
When Kelly Ross Krout was a teenager, she fell into a crowd of Evangelical conservatives and identified as a Republican -- over the last decade, she's...
Denzel McCambell is Fighting for Democracy in Detroit
Denzel McCambell grew up in Detroit as the son of social worker mom and an autoworker dad -- it was a union family. He always understood why civic eng...
Shan Rose Wants to Let Kids Be Kids
Shan Rose never imagined she'd be running for office. She's experienced teenage homelessness, lost her husband to gun violence, lost a son to medical...
In Class By Day, Running for Office By Night: Justin Tseng for Medford City Council
First, a sneak preview of an exciting initiative launching today! Then: Justin Tseng grew up in Medford -- a small town outside Boston. Now as a senio...
This Race is A Very Big Deal: Sheila Nezhad for Mayor of Minneapolis
Sheila Nezhad has a long history of activism and serving her community of Minneapolis. After the murder of George Floyd in 2020, the city (and the wor...
Keeping Georgia Blue: Dontaye Carter for Mayor of Sandy Springs, GA
Dontaye Carter is running for mayor of Sandy Springs, GA, a city just outside Atlanta -- his opponent is the former chair of the Georgia Republican Pa...
Elizabeth Wanczak Just Really Really Loves Local Government - That's Why She Wants to Serve In It
Elizabeth Wanczak first started caring about local government by watching the city planning meetings on public access television. (She admits, it was...
A Very Special Episode with RFS Co-founder Ross Morales Rocketto
For our 50th week of podcasting (and 51st episode, whoops!), Amanda and Run for Something co-founder Ross Morales Rocketto check in to talk about thei...
How the Pandemic Inspired Public Health Expert Dr. Aditi Bussells to Run for Office
Dr. Aditi Srivastav Bussels never thought she'd run for office -- she got multiple degrees in public health to try and take care of people. But when t...
Broward County School Board Member Sarah Leonardi is Taking On the Florida Governor to Fight for Kids
School boards and Florida have both been in the news lately - so we talked with Broward County School Board member Sarah Leonardi about what's going o...
Go Blue! How University of Michigan Regent Jordan Acker's Age Makes Him Better at His Job
Jordan Acker was a University of Michigan alum and lawyer working hard and raising a family when he went through a health scare that landed him in the...
Ruthzee Louijeune Is Going to Bring Affordable Housing to Boston
Ruthzee Louijeune is the daughter of Haitian immigrants -- a history that's intimately shaped her approach to serving and fighting for her community....
From Hair Stylist to Black Lives Matter Activist to Candidate: Bridgette Craighead is Going to Flip Her Virginia District Blue
Bridgette Craighead was born and raised in Rocky Mount, Virginia -- as a mom and small business owner, she'd never really gotten political before unti...
Why Texas Democrats Had to Flee Texas to Do Their Jobs and Fight for Democracy, with Reps. Erin Zwiener and James Talarico
It's the biggest story in politics right now: In order to deny Texas Republicans the quorum needed to pass egregious voter suppression laws, Democrats...
You're Going to Fall in Love with Dr. Tyler Titus
Dr. Tyler Titus grew up in poverty in rural Pennsylvania, never feeling like they quite fit in -- they were bullied and struggled with suicide ideatio...
Rhode Island Sen. Cynthia Mendes On Why Young Women of Color Need To Claim Their Power
At least a half dozen people called in to 833-244-5382 and requested her, so here she is: Rhode Island Sen. Cynthia Mendes talks about how she grew up...
Why A Queer Latinx Architect Should Be Mayor of Seattle - Andrew Grant Houston
Some election updates! (Spoiler: A bunch of the folks you've met on the show in past episodes have WON -- get excited.) Then, a conversation with Andr...
The First Latinx Leader in the NC State House: Ricky Hurtado
Ricky Hurtado made history in 2020: He became the first Latinx leader in the NC state house, and was one of the rare Democrats anywhere to flip a stat...
India Walton Is Going to Be the First Woman Mayor of Buffalo
When India Walton was growing up working class in Buffalo, she always knew she'd serve her community in some way -- but she never would have guessed t...
Amanda Farías Is Who The Bronx Needs in City Hall
First, our very first voicemail!! Listen in as Amanda responds to a caller about the 1/6 commission and talks about how she gets her news. (Then leave...
How Jennifer Kitchen Plans To Flip A Red Seat Blue in Rural Virginia
After the 2016 election, Jennifer Kitchen started getting involved -- in spite of a chronic pain disorder that made marching and canvassing hard, she...
Black Lives Matter Activist Chi Ossé Is Ready to Represent Brooklyn
First, some news! The Run for Something podcast now had a voicemail box. Give us a call at (833) 244-5382 with any questions, hopes, fears, dreams, or...
From Berkeley Graduation to Berkeley City Council - Rigel Robinson's Leading When It Matters Most
Missouri native Rigel Robinson started at UC Berkeley in 2014 as an eager student, ready to learn and to fall in love with the city he'd call home. Fo...
What Happens When A Queer Muslim Woman Runs for Office Again - Liliana Bakhtiari for Atlanta City Council
When Liliana Bakhtiari ran for Atlanta City Council in 2017, she made national headlines as a queer Muslim millennial seeking leadership. She came up...
From First-time Activist to First-time Candidate: Justan Fields for Allentown City Council
Justan Parker Fields had never really been involved in politics before -- it had run in his family, sure, but he'd never been too engaged. But when th...
The "Squad" of Sacramento - City Councilmembers Katie Valenzuela and Mai Vang
Housing activist Katie Valenzuela ran against an incumbent member of the Sacramento City Council and won, in spite of being outspent 3 to 1. A few mon...
Following In The Footsteps of Barack Obama - IL State Sen. Robert Peters
IL State Sen. Robert Peters was born to a mom with addiction problems and was then adopted by a social worker and a civil rights lawyer, who raised hi...
How To Talk to Trump Voters with Maine State Senator Chloe Maxmin
Climate activist Chloe Maxmin first ran for Maine state house in 2018 and won, becoming the first Democrat to ever represent her very rural very old c...
Boston City Council Candidate Kendra Hicks Is a Rising Star
Kendra Hicks is an activist, an organizer, a mom of a son on the autism spectrum, and a possibly history-making candidate for Boston City Council. She...
Cleveland Can't Wait: Why Justin Bibb is Running for Mayor
When his mom told him he was never going to be the next LeBron James, Ohio native Justin Bibb was crushed -- until a chance encounter with a president...
How Denver School Board Director Tay Anderson Became the Youngest Elected Official in Colorado
First, Amanda talks through some new Run for Something research that shows local candidates really do have "reverse coattails." Then: A conversation w...
Marche' Johnson Lost By 6 Votes The First Time - That Won't Happen Again
We don't often hear from Democrats running in Alabama - let's fix that! Meet Marche' Johnson, a veteran and single mom running for Montgomery City Cou...
Why NY state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi is Furious (And Unapologetic About It)
NY state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi talks about her path to elected office, what Democrats got done over the last few years, and why she's so (righteously...