We have a big problem in our Democratic circles and I don’t what to do other than to shine a light on it and continue to focus on it as we barrel on to the 2022 election and beyond.  

Our Republican counterparts are outspending us 10 to 1 on good days and 50 to 1 on bad days. “Why?”, you ask. “Because they can”, is both the easy and the hard answer. They are the party of wealth, and for the wealthy, giving money to Republicans is a good investment.

We know we can out-campaign them on any given day on the ground because we are motivated and engaged.  But even ground games need money, and here we fall short time and time again. I know plenty of well-heeled democrats – why are so many so reluctant to pull out their wallets for local races?  How do we motivate them, educate them, encourage them to open their wallets as our opponents obviously have?  

I wish I had the answers.  But we need to start screaming these questions in order to shed the light on this problem.  We have every single seat in DuPage county up for election in 2022; we are currently seeking candidates to fill almost 50 seats in 2022.  These candidates will NOT come with any kind of a war chest; they will look to us, their township organizations, and the county for help.  Training and hand-holding are not enough —  they will need CASH. How are we going to provide it?

Let’s remove the taboos from politics and business — the Republicans seemingly have! Start talking about who and why you donate to with everyone. It’s easy to connect to your newly elected and engaged public officials and rewarding to see immediate results from your efforts when you get involved. 

January 14 through March 14, 2022

• Petitions due

June 28, 2022 – GENERAL PRIMARY ELECTION

• For the Nomination of Federal, State, and County Officials and for the election of Precinct Committee persons

November 8, 2022 – GENERAL ELECTION

• For the Election of Federal, State, and County Officials

DuPage Election Division : Upcoming Elections

The recent Tornado disaster in Naperville should remind us that no one is immune. Here’s how to be vigilant during severe weather season.

The outdoor sirens are intended to alert people who are outdoors. You should NOT rely on them to alert you when you are indoors.

Know the difference between Watches and Warnings.

• A WATCH means the conditions are right for severe weather in your area and you should be alert.
• A WARNING means that something dangerous is happening NOW and you should take immediate protective measures if you are in the warned ares.

While the now-common cell phone alerts are great, note that cell towers are easy marks for tornadoes. The most reliable alerting device is a NOAA Weather Radio. These will turn on automatically to alert you during a watch or warning. This is an example of an inexpensive full-featured model (disclaimer: I don’t own one of these and can’t “endorse” it as such, but it looks pretty good).

Some of you may not be aware of Deep Dive DuPage, a live webcast conducted by LTDO vice-chair Claire Goldenberg and Holly Hootman. They interview “local politicians, elected officials, grassroots leaders and organizations in our community”.

The interviews are live most Fridays at 7:00pm. If you view live you get the chance to participate, but if you can’t, no problem; the interviews are recorded. The most recent interview was with newly elected Lisle Township trustees Lisa Rose and Jean Page. Tune in sometime!

July 17th was the first anniversary of the death of civil rights activist Congressman John Lewis. He was an inspiration to America and the world. The following quote from heather Cox Richardson honors his memory:

A year ago tonight, Georgia Representative John Lewis passed away from pancreatic cancer at 80 years old. As a young adult, Lewis was a “troublemaker,” breaking the laws of his state: the laws upholding racial segregation. He organized voting registration drives and in 1960 was one of the thirteen original Freedom Riders, white and Black students traveling together from Washington, D.C., to New Orleans to challenge segregation. “It was very violent. I thought I was going to die. I was left lying at the Greyhound bus station in Montgomery unconscious,” Lewis later recalled.

Read the rest of her essay here.