Richmond, VA - In advance of the first presidential debate, New Virginia Majority is announcing the endorsement of the Biden-Harris ticket for President and Vice President.
In the wake of injustices and inequalities facing this nation, it is imperative that we elect candidates who have a history of engaging with working-class people of color. Over the last decade, NVM has expanded the electorate in Virginia to be more reflective of Virginia’s rich diversity by registering nearly 300,000 new voters and knocking on over 3 million doors to get people of color and young people to the polls. As a result, Black and brown voters have turned out in record numbers, contributing to a new Virginia – one that gives voice to the most underrepresented among us, that values people no matter who we are, where we come from, where we live, or who we love.
NVM has helped usher in sweeping change in Virginia, from restoring civil rights to over 200,000 formerly incarcerated people, expanding Medicaid for nearly 400,000 Virginians, allowing all immigrants, regardless of their status, to drive safely on our streets, and showing the country how to lead on expanding voting rights.
But Virginia, like the rest of the country, has a long way to go. Right now, we are facing some of the greatest challenges of our lifetimes - not only a public health crisis but a crisis among our economic, political, and social systems - the very fabric of this country.
This year, healthcare, a global pandemic, racial equity, climate justice, voting rights, the Supreme Court, and more hang in the balance. 200,000 people have died from COVID-19, and there is no clear way forward on how we are going to end the pandemic. Protesters are marching against police brutality and racial injustice. Families are being evicted from their homes because of lost wages in this unstable economic climate.
But there is still hope. We have seen firsthand in Virginia the progress that can be made when working-class communities of color come together, vote, and hold elected officials accountable.
Woven into the very fabric and foundation of our country is the idea that we have to form a more perfect union-the acknowledgment that we have to continually work towards making things better for us all. We can still live up to that notion, but it can only become reality through choosing leaders who will aim for a democracy that reflects everyone. Although one single presidential candidate can’t save us, we have the power to save ourselves through our right to vote.
New Virginia Majority believes the Biden-Harris ticket will work towards rolling back executive orders that have terrorized immigrants, sold out the environment to mining and oil companies and ravaged the health and housing of working-class communities of color.
Our organization looks forward to getting the Biden-Harris ticket elected and working in solidarity with progressive organizations across the country to take this nation on a path toward transformative change for all of us. The terrain of struggle for a democratic, just, and sustainable United States will only advance with the election of Joe Biden as President.
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New Virginia Majority builds power in working-class communities of color, in immigrant communities, among LGBTQ people, women, youth, and progressives across the Commonwealth. We organize for racial and economic justice through large-scale political education, mobilization and advocacy around dozens of issues. We fight for a Virginia that is just, democratic and environmentally sustainable. For more information, visit our website and follow us on Twitter and Facebook at @NewVAMajority.