This is huge. Last night, Leaders We Deserve took down our first asleep-at-the-wheel Democratic incumbent of the cycle.
Donavan McKinney just defeated Shri Thanedar in Michigan’s 13th Congressional District! 🎉
Honestly, this one hits different. Shri is a multimillionaire who spent years cozying up to corporations and special interests, and using $10 million of his own money trying to buy this seat. While the people of Detroit struggled to afford rent, healthcare, and access basic services, Shri had more in common with the donor class than the people he was supposed to represent. And that’s why Shri was the first Democratic incumbent Leaders We Deserve picked to challenge.
He’s exactly the kind of Democrat who makes voters feel apathetic about our system and the Democratic party. When I was pushed out of the DNC it was because I believed our party should not have asleep-at-the-wheel, corrupt incumbents, like Shri Thanedar, who have gotten too comfortable in their safe blue seats and failed to deliver for their constituents or fight back against Trump. The DNC had a problem with that, but I was able to count on supporters like you to believe in this mission and make this possible, and you did just that. THANK YOU!! This is just the start.
Donavan is the complete opposite of Shri. He’s spent his career fighting tooth and nail for Michigan families — bringing home $600 million to replace lead pipes poisoning their water supply, $10 million for community violence intervention, and millions more for public schools and community centers.
He wrote bills to stop monopoly utility companies from price gouging working families. He makes the people of his district feel seen, heard, and like they actually have a reason to hope for the future. And he did all of that while refusing every single dollar of corporate cash in this race.
That’s because Donavan isn’t here to play politics with people’s lives. He’s here to fight for his community, and to change Detroit for the better. And now, with this being a safe blue seat, he’s on his way to Congress to do just that.
Leaders We Deserve is incredibly proud to have backed Donavan from the start, and last night proved exactly why we did. Michigan wanted a fighter in their corner they knew they could trust. A leader willing to take on the status quo and build power from the ground up.
This is what it looks like when you replace a corrupt, ineffective incumbent with a young progressive who is actually capable of delivering for the people he represents. It sends a message that no incumbent is untouchable when the right candidate chooses to lead with integrity and they have a real people-powered movement behind them.
This is only the beginning. The first of many dominoes to fall. We’re coming for asleep-at-the-wheel Democrats in safe blue seats across the country, and we’re flipping seats red to blue to break the GOP’s grip on power.
The work we’re doing is making a real difference. And we’re doing it all without a single cent from corporate PACs — just genuine grassroots support.
Thank you for being a part of this,
David Hogg
| To give by check: Leaders We Deserve 611 Pennsylvania Ave SE #192 Washington, DC 20003 Email us: info@leaderswedeserve.com |