Democracy is my Party.
Protecting it is my mission. President Biden is betting his campaign on protecting our democracy and I am too.
For most of my professional life, democracy was something I took for granted in the U.S. Regardless of its imperfections and interpretations; I believe democracy was a core shared American value that bound us together across an ideological spectrum - and made us stand out. Sadly, I don't think that anymore, so I'm so glad President Biden is centering his re-election campaign on preserving and improving our democracy. I’m here to double down on my commitment to it because I know it is the only vehicle for freedom and all the issues I care deeply about.
As the world watches, America faces an unprecedented threat to its democracy. The MAGA movement, led by former President Donald Trump and his loyal followers like Speaker Mike Johnson, is a force that cannot be ignored. Their movement represents an existential threat to our way of life.
Democracy is my profession.
My political and democracy development work spans four decades, five continents, 20+ counties, 48 U.S. States, and hundreds of candidates, parties, ballot measures, and issue advocacy campaigns.
In the United States, I've worked for the Democratic Party and many progressive nonprofits and companies. Globally, I’ve worked with national and local government leaders, political parties, civil society organizations, and women and youth in war zones and post-conflict developing democracies.
Democracy is my country.
My life straddles two professional worlds, three cities on two continents - but democracy is always my center. It is my home.
Democracy is my party.
Working abroad, I don’t represent the Democratic party nor work for other parties. I don't help "elect" anyone. I'm not a partisan in that sense when working internationally. I’ll always be a Democrat, but right now, our democracy is even more important.
Democracy is my school. Democracy is my church.
Democracy is how I was educated and what I taught. I am doubling down on this education. Representative democracy is the ideal I worship and often pray for and about.
This video is just one of many training lessons I created. The session was for youth activists in Kenya and Zambia.
Our democracy is flawed.
As a practitioner, I'm mindful that our uniquely American democracy is imperfect. I've never pointed to American democracy as something to replicate or emulate. Instead, I used it as an example of some things that work and others that don't. Still, ours is one of the better systems of government in the world.
My concerns about American democracy center on our constitutional flaws that give Power to too few who do not represent "We the people." The electoral college benefits land over people and disproportionally gives whiter, rural conservatives a much greater voice over our diverse population. As a result of this, among other flaws, we have a far less representative democracy than we deserve. But I digress.
President Biden is centering his re-election campaign on preserving and improving our democracy for good and necessary reasons. His first ad of 2024 lays out why.
Democracy is our Northstar.
As a nation, we have faced numerous challenges in recent years that threatened the very foundations of our democratic system. From foreign interference in elections to voter suppression tactics and partisan gerrymandering, our democracy has come under attack from multiple angles. And to make matters worse, the pandemic only amplified these issues and exposed even more vulnerabilities.
This election is no longer just about which party should lead - this is about the preservation of who and what we are as Americans. I no longer see the Presidential campaign as a choice between the Democratic and Republican nominees but a choice about whether America should be a democracy.
Many issues are mobilizing and polarizing this country. Reproductive freedom and abortion access, guns, LGBTI+ rights, climate change and renewable energy, economic opportunity and wealth inequities, immigration, crime, education, health care, how we deal with the war in Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, and many other places like the DRC are issues I care most about. These issues divide our parties, but democracy used to be what united us. Without democracy, we can’t address any of the other issues. Without democracy, the America we love will no longer exist.
I don't like to be hyperbolic, but the MAGA movement is an existential threat to our way of life.
Under Trump's first-term leadership, America's reputation suffered greatly globally. His divisive rhetoric and actions caused turmoil and chaos within our own country and damaged our credibility as a leader in democracy. And now, with the possibility of his re-election or the continued rise of those who align themselves with him, we face the danger of losing everything that makes us who we are.
America's reputation under Trump's first-term leadership suffered around the world. His continued strength and viability represent despite leading the Jan 6th insurrection and the myriad of legal woes that have diminished our credibility as a global democracy leader.
If Trump is re-elected or we see the continued assent of the MAGA movement through his allies like Speaker Mike Johnson, the US will no longer recognize the U.S. as the Global superpower we've been for decades.
Democracy is not guaranteed.
You can’t fully appreciate this until you’ve lived in places without it. Everyone has a role to play to protect it. How are you?
My expertise in the U.S. is communicating with and mobilizing voters to vote and win elections. I plan to help organizations develop plans and implement direct mail and digital campaigns. I'm ready to support Democratic candidates and committees, unions, ballot measures, and progressive nonprofit organizations to protect our democracy through my company, Amplify Power.
Please reach out if I can help your campaign with planning, mail, or digital voter contact.
We need all hands on deck to protect democracy. If you need help finding your role, let me know.
My passion is helping promote women and BIPOC. My superpower is helping anyone willing to contribute time, skill, money, or energy to promoting and protecting democracy - be that as an individual, company, campaign, or other organization. I created GAIN Power to build a progressive democratic community and support and grow its leadership.
GAIN Power's mission is to democratize democracy.
We’re here to demystify and diversify our party and progressive movement, to protect our existing democracy, and to promote and build it to be a more perfect representative democracy.
GAIN Power's content and core programs include:
GAIN Power networking site
Democracy directory and progressive marketspace
GAIN Power, Powerful Blog, content, and social channels
GAIN Power is designed for networking and marketing, celebrating and elevating, recruiting and retaining talent, and developing and training the political professionals and organizations doing this work now.
Finally, I've always been a global citizen. My commitment to our democracy and the 2024 elections is all in service of the Sustainable Development Goals. Our domestic democracy practitioner community should be more engaged with global players and work in the fight for representative democracy worldwide. Global GAIN is a nonprofit NGO focused on women’s political leadership and democratic leaders in developing democracies, and this is now included here.
Contact me if any of this speaks to you and you see a way to collaborate. My contact and links are on AmyPritchard.com. Thank you for reading.