Subject: Let's fight on our issues year-round

Dear fellow Wisconsinites,

Tony Evers and Mandela Barnes—and 70% of Wisconsinites—want to expand Medicaid. The GOP opposes it.

Folks, we've got a fight on our hands, and the stakes are literally life and death.

Felesia Martin, Lee Snodgrass and I are running to lead the Democratic Party of Wisconsin on a platform of "FIRE": Fight on issues, between elections; Include & Respect everyone; and Empower activists and county parties through data, technology, and training. The health care battle makes vivid why "fight" comes first.

To fight for health care, turn up the heat. It's time for a wave of organized political pressure—especially public pressure—on Republicans in the state legislature, from their own constituents. That's the core of how we defeated repeal of the Affordable Care Act in 2017. You can get started right now: call the state legislative hotline at 1-800-362-9472, or text the word "state" to 50409 to send a message. Going forward, we'll need much more. County parties and neighborhood teams will organize door to door canvasses, press events, and rallies. We'll win the social media war. We'll make sure Wisconsinites know the truth—that expanding Medicaid means coverage for 82,000 people, $1.6 billion in federal dollars coming into Wisconsin, and a better and more affordable system for all. And we'll make the contrast stark, everywhere: Democrats want to expand health care to all. Republicans want to take it away.

Win or lose, fighting shows who we are. Actions speak louder than words. We're at our best when we demonstrate that we don't only show up at election time, asking for votes—but that we come together and fight for the values we advocate, year-round. We grow when our organizing includes communities of color, rural communities, and Wisconsinites young and old in every part of the state. Our voice reaches more people when we identify powerful, diverse spokespeople (perhaps folks who might one day run for office!) and lift up their voices in the press, at events, and through social media.

Felesia, Lee, and I don't just believe this—we've lived it. I designed and led's campaign to stop health care repeal. Felesia Martin, our ticket's candidate for First Vice Chair, co-founded Organizing For America and organized to pass the Affordable Care Act in the first place. Lee Snodgrass, our ticket's candidate for Second Vice Chair, has decades of experience as a professional communicator with a track record of fighting for women's empowerment. We're in this race because of our values, we know that the Democratic Party will thrive by fighting for the values enshrined in our platform, and we're eager to supercharge our party's fighting spirit.  

If this lines up with your vision of the party, we'd be grateful for your support—and your partnership.

The GOP plans to vote to strip out Medicaid expansion this Thursday, so it's all hands on deck, right away. And then we look forward to seeing you at the state convention in June, and working with you in the years to come.

Democracy is not a spectator sport. We're all in this together. Thanks so much for all your work to build a party, state, and a country, where everyone can thrive. Let's take our fight to the next level, together.

With gratitude,

Ben Wikler

P.S. Like our campaign on Facebook to keep up to date on our progress and our travels around the state!