Last Tuesday in West Virginia, progressive luminary Paula Jean Swearingin bested two moderates to win the right to challenge GOP Sen Shelley Moore Capito.
A rare bright spot for a progressive movement so far “steamrolled” in Senate primaries this cycle, as Politico reports.
Despite a victory for progressives, Swearingins chances do look weak - West Virginia is blood red, a state that gave Trump 69% of the vote in 2016.
Due to the senate's entrenched bias in favour of small, rural, white states like West Virginia, for the Democrats to have a shot at taking the upper chamber this year they need the support of swing voters in states such as Montana or Alabama, both of which favour Trump overwhelmingly on the presidential level but remain within reach of Democratic Senate candidates, both moderates with established brands and records of bipartisanship.
The downside, as any progressive can clearly see, is that any victory will leave the Democrats with a majority in name only, liberal ideals stymied by the likes of Sens Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) - for real change to occur, action must take place aside from voting! If the recent BLM protests have proven anything, it’s that voters must get out onto the streets, not just the voting booth, if they want change.
Nevertheless, the political revolution is a long time coming.
Harrison Moore
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