How Running Everywhere in Virginia Sparked a "Political Earthquake"

A Model for 2026

I want to highlight a deep-dive done into the recent Virginia political earthquake, written by Robbin Warner and my friends at Grassroots Connector.

You can read the whole story here:

When We Run Everywhere, We Win

First, Robbin walks through the drama of election night:

“For the first time in years, Democrats had fielded candidates in all 100 House of Delegates races. The goal? Hold the 51-seat majority and flip a few more. Lowell Feld of Blue Virginia boasted at the beginning of the evening with more bravado than conviction, “A great night for Democrats would be sweeping all three statewide races and picking up 9 seats.”

By 8:30 p.m., the majority was safe. Then the numbers began to grow. Three flips. Then five. Minutes later—seven. Social media erupted, commentators breathlessly recalculating what might be possible. By 9:00 p.m., they had already blown past Lowell’s definition of “great.” And still the numbers rose.

By the time the final precincts reported, the map had transformed. Thirteen Republican-held seats had flipped—thirteen—expanding the Democratic majority from 51 to 64. It was a seismic shift, the largest majority the party had captured since 1987.

Election night in Virginia had begun with predictability. It ended with a political earthquake.”

She then analyzes the reasons for this stunning success: “It all came down to one simple strategy: when you run everywhere, you win.”

Impressively, “in 2025, every county in Virginia moved more blue—progress made possible only because Democrats planted blue seeds everywhere.”

And here’s how a wide variety of Virginia activists and groups came together to make this happen:

Recruitment

It all starts with good people stepping up to run, and a whole lot of others encouraging them to do so: “Recruiting candidates for every state legislative seat is no small feat—it’s a full-on, all-hands effort. It takes people scouting for talent, making phone calls, nudging potential leaders, and convincing them to step into the arena.”

Robin reviews the amazing coalition of groups and individuals who jointly engaged in a full-time, highly personalized recruitment effort:

“Many were lifted into the race by Virginia-based organizations like Rural GroundGame and Emerge Virginia, both part of a growing cohort of Virginia Organizations partnering through the newly formed Build the Bench, an association of left-leaning groups seeking to recruit and train candidates for office. There were individual recruiters like Fergie Reid, Sr., the trailblazing first African American elected to the Virginia General Assembly since Reconstruction, and his son, Fergie Reid, Jr. who persuaded people to run one conversation at a time from their home in California. Local Democratic Committees, the House Democratic Caucus, the Rural Caucus, and sitting elected officials were also key drivers in the recruiting process.”

Candidate Support

Then comes the essential need that each of the recruited candidates receive enough support to get their message out there. In Virginia, a number of groups stepped up, lifting candidates in tough districts with support and assistance that they normally wouldn’t see—from direct financial support to postcards and phone calls to get-out-the-vote efforts and volunteers.

A group called “Rural GroundGame (RGG) was a powerful ally for rural candidates. RGG offered a full menu of campaign services, designed especially for first-time and under-resourced candidates. It starts with the basics—like ensuring candidates make it on the ballot, coaching candidates through the maze of paperwork required by the State Department of Elections…[Then], RGG steps in with everything from free field plans and ongoing field and data support, access to data, voter contact and digital tools, ad placements, assistance with compliance, and at cost payroll management for campaign staff. And they do it either free or at-cost, because RGG shoulders the year-round fundraising needed to employ experienced campaign professionals who know how to guide even the most novice candidate.”

Gains Even in the Toughest Districts

Finally, never forget that the wins from running everywhere don’t just come from the seats you flip (and Virginia did a lot of flipping). They also come from the gains you make in the toughest areas, and the momentum you build for the long run from fielding and contesting good candidates.

These gains matter just as much in the deeper and longer battle for democracy.

Two examples:

“Take first-time candidate Liz Richardson in HD100 on the rural Eastern Shore. She didn’t win—but she earned a strong 47% of the vote. For the first time in a long while, that district is now considered flippable in 2027.”

“Or look at Dr. Gary Miller, a respected local physician who ran in deep-red District 49 in Southwest Virginia. He didn’t take the seat, but his campaign sparked excitement in a community that had been politically ignored for years. Surprising all, he outperformed the top of the ticket by a small margin.”

Honoring Candidates…

Something I emphasize in my books is how critical it is that we honor, thank and support candidates who run in tough places but don’t end up winning. That we make clear how much we value their campaigns. (If they don’t feel that, folks will never run).

Which means how we respond to their taking on (and coming up short in) tough races matters so much — because they are performing the highest form of public service (to democracy) just by running. Make sure they know that:

“When candidates don’t win, they need to know that what they did mattered. Postcards4VA understands this deeply—they send thank-you postcards to every candidate they support, win or lose. The responses are heartfelt, especially from down-ballot candidates who rarely receive recognition. Those notes remind them their efforts mattered. Because they did. Rise Hayes, a Gen Z candidate who ran in one of the long ignored red districts in the state, posted on social media what receiving thank you cards meant to her: “Just got my mail and it was full of thank you cards. I needed this.”

Running Again

There’s another reason to do be sure candidates know we value their runs for office—because often the winning candidates are those who run multiple times. Those who turn around and run again, right away.

I’ve seen that many times in Ohio.

Virginia saw it too:

“Getting candidates to run again is a cornerstone of the run everywhere strategy—and for good reason. When someone steps back into the arena, they bring with them everything they learned the first time: hard-won experience, deeper community ties, and a support network that’s already fired up and ready to go. Candidates choose to run again because they feel proud of the campaigns they built—and eager to keep pushing forward.

Just look at some of the standout candidates from 2025. Many of the early favorites were people who had run—and narrowly lost—in 2023. Jessica Anderson (HD71) missed victory by 667 votes. Lily Franklin (HD41) fell short by just 183. Kimberly Pope Adams (HD82) lost by a razor-thin 78. But none of them stopped after Election Day. They kept showing up—meeting voters, advocating for their communities, staying rooted in the work. When they ran again, they didn’t just win—they won big! In fact, Franklin outperformed Spanberger in key precincts.

Take Andrew Payton who ran in HD34, a district that is part farm land and part state university. He’d never planned to run until Rural GroundGame reached out. Motivated by a sense of responsibility to his community, he built a strong campaign with RGG’s support and worked tirelessly on the ground. He lost by just 257 votes—putting the district on the 2027 flip list—and he’s already gearing up for another run, with a January 2026 town hall on the calendar.

Then there’s Joy Powers, a fourth-generation cattle farmer from Bedford County, who woke up after the 2024 election convinced it was time to step forward, not step back. When asked why she didn’t just move, she said, “You can’t move 400 acres and 100 cattle.”Encouraged by Rural GroundGame and the Rural Caucus, she jumped into politics—learning on the fly and discovering a hidden community of Democrats who finally felt seen. She didn’t win, but she forced her opponent to spend money at home. Now she’s running for Congress, carrying her name recognition and hard-won campaign skills with her.”

Incredible stories, aren’t they?

Next Up!

Folks, there are filing deadlines coming up quickly all over America.

Trump and his allies are flailing (and splintering).

Economic conditions across the country are waking people up to the reality that trickle-down policies being pushed in most American statehouses may be helping a few at the top—but that the rest of us are paying the price.

From skyrocketing energy bills, to attacks on public schools, to the cost of groceries, to the damage done by tariff chaos, to health care, there are issues to run on (and win on!) in every district in America.

Bottom line: we should always run everywhere. But there’s never been a better time to do it than 2026.

Opportunities for gains abound. Any uncontested district is a wasted opportunity. An unearned gift to those in power.

Thank you Virginia for showing the way.

Let’s get to work!