46th LD Blog

As I’m sure you have now heard, United States Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has lost her long battle with cancer on this evening of Rosh Hashanah.

Her tenacity in continuing to work in recent days as her health faltered has been nothing less than a gift of love to the people of our nation.  She understood, perhaps even better than we do, the consequences of a Supreme Court vacancy before the election in November.

NPR reports that just days before her death, as her strength waned, Justice Ginsburg dictated this statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera:

"My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

It is left to us to do everything we can to ensure Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s final wish is fulfilled. 

We have much work to do.  But that is for tomorrow.

Tonight, may we reflect upon an extraordinary life very well lived, in service to others.

One of our Democratic friends, King County State Committeeman Nathaniel Block, wrote the following tribute. His words are so fitting that sharing his thoughts verbatim is appropriate:

“Normally on Rosh Hashanah I post wishes for a Happy New Year of peace and joy to all. Tonight that just doesn’t feel right.

In Jewish tradition there is a belief called Tzadikim Nistarim, that there are always thirty-six righteous people in the world who justify the existence of humanity and avert the threatened disasters of people persecuted by the enemies that surround them.

There is no question in my mind that RBG was one of those thirty-six righteous people. The world is a worse place tonight for her loss. May her memory be a blessing.

May we strive in the new year of 5781 to follow her example to be a righteous person and protect those persecuted and oppressed.”

Indeed, may we all so strive to follow her example.

On behalf of the executive board of the 46th District Democrats,

Julie Anne Kempf

Chair

We are now weeks away from November 3rd, Election Day. And importantly in Washington, we are ballots are mailed out October 14th. Here in the 46th LD, maximizing turnout is * the key* to bringing progressive change to our state. Whether it’s returning our excellent delegation in the legislature or bringing decisive vote totals for state wide offices and initiatives, what happens in the 46th LD is crucial.

Every vote is vital, and from now until Election Day, every day is important. We want to help all who are willing to put the work in to find a way to participate in our GOTV efforts to bring change to our country. We need to be both seen and heard!

First off: being heard! Because of the on-going COVID-19 outbreak, we are re-focusing our voter outreach from canvassing in-person to phone-banking. We’ll be able to reach more voters this way, while keeping our community safe. So while our PCOs will be calling their precincts as ballots drop to maximize turnout, we are also teaming up with the Washington State Democrats for a weekly phonebank from now to the election every Monday. We will be hosting a concurrent Zoom for training, real-time help, and to foster community for our local activists. Below are the registration links for both the upcoming Zoom and phonebank. Make sure to sign-up for both. 

• Zoom Registration: Zoom Training & Hangout

• Phonebank Registration: NGP VAN Phonebank

And make sure to check out our website calendar for the other phonebanks as well.

And secondly, being seen! There is an old adage that yard signs don’t vote. While technically true, it is important that we do what we can in a district within our borders to make sure our neighbors have that visual reminder, even in strange times, that it is election season and we all have to vote! So again to keep our community safe, we are building a distribution system for Yard Signs! You simply sign up that you are interested in any of our available yard signs and we’ll reach out to you straight away to arrange for either no-contact delivery or pick-up from one of our neighborhood sign distribution locations.

• Yard Sign Form: Request Yard Sign(s)

Lastly, we are still looking for volunteers in the 46th for all the outreach efforts that are upcoming, so if you haven’t yet filled out the sign-up form, you can do so here: GOTV Form.

In Solidarity,

GOTV Team, 46th LD Democrats