2023 Virginia Races
In a very tight election, Swing Blue Alliance helped protect democracy in Virginia, where Dems held the State Senate and flipped the House of Delegates.
Our district, SD-17, was a mixed bag, Our state Senate candidate lost, but one House of Delegates candidate won a substantial victory, helping to clinch the new Democratic legislative majority in Virginia. The other, who lacked support aside from what Swing Blue provided, ‘overperformed’ what would be expected in this fairly red district, losing by a mere 550 votes (out of 28,957).
This scenario highlights the diverse and challenging political terrain in Virginia, where victories in some districts are offset by defeats in others. The results underscore the importance of understanding and addressing the unique needs and perspectives of each district to secure broader successes.
Swing Blue Alliance’s Contributions
- 16 volunteers went to Suffolk, Virginia and knocked on over 5,000 doors, spoke with 1,100 voters, and identified 565 supporters.
- 125 volunteers had nearly 3,000 phone conversations with voters and identified over 2,000 supporters.
- 198 donors raised $48.5K for Virginia candidates and voter empowerment organizations.
- Volunteers sent 77,300 postcards on behalf of urban and rural candidates.
Building for the Future
In April 2023, we joined with Rural GroundGame and Red2Blue to help build a political infrastructure that would empower Dem candidates to reclaim rural votes. Together, they set up phone banks where volunteers spoke to over 1600 rural voters, found 1034 supporters, and recruited 77 volunteers. They also sent over 50,000 postcards to these voters.
Swing Blue Alliance’s Virginia efforts had a broad positive impact on the state’s political outcomes. The large-scale mail campaigns, combined with significant phone banking and canvassing activities, played a crucial role in recruiting local volunteers, educating voters, and mobilizing support across dozens of campaigns across the state, and laying the groundwork to take back Virginia’s Second Congressional District in 2024.