Democracy for America (DFA) is a
progressive political action committee, headquartered in
Burlington,
Vermont
Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...
. Founded by former
Democratic National Committee Chair
Howard Dean
Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American physician, author, lobbyist, and retired politician who served as the 79th governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2005 to 2009 ...
in 2004, DFA leads public awareness campaigns on a variety of public policy issues, trains activists, and provides funding directly to candidates for office. The organization has more than a million members in the United States and internationally.
History
Foundation and early history (2001–2004)
Dean created the PAC Fund for a Healthy America in 2001 in
Montpelier in advance of a planned campaign for president. In March 2004, following the conclusion of Dean's presidential campaign, the organization was renamed "Democracy for America".
Following his unsuccessful run for the
Democratic nomination in the
2004 presidential election, Dean used the organization to build on the grassroots momentum for
Democratic candidates around the country. DFA used the Internet-based, grassroots organizing that Dean had created for his presidential campaign to help like-minded Democrats get elected. In 2004 the organization endorsed and supported Democrats (known as the
Dean Dozen
The "Dean Dozen" in American politics, was the collective term for six groups of 12 candidates endorsed by Democracy for America, the political action committee led by former Vermont governor and presidential candidate Howard Dean, in the 2004 ...
) on the federal, state, and county levels.
2005–present
In 2005, Dean turned over control of the organization to his brother,
Jim Dean, when he became DNC Chair. Since then, Democracy for America has helped elect over 600 progressives into office, including President
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...
, while building their membership to over a million like-minded progressives across all fifty states. In 2007, DFA became the first
carbon-neutral political action committee in the United States.
Arshad Hasan
Arshad Hasan was the executive director of ProgressNow. He was previously executive director for Democracy for America.
Education
Arshad grew up in Grand Forks, North Dakota, and attended Red River High School.
Arshad attended the Universi ...
served as executive director from 2007 to 2013, after which
Charles R. Chamberlain became executive director. Effective January 1, 2019, Chamberlain was named chair, while
Yvette Simpson was named Chief Executive. In December 2022, Simpson announced she would step down from the organization.
DFA-List
DFA focuses on endorsing candidates, at all levels of office, both local and national. DFA's endorsements are often orchestrated by members of local groups, and they provide resources, such as funds and addresses, to the endorsed campaign. According to their own records, the group endorsed over 578 candidates. Candidates wishing for an endorsement may apply on the organization's website.
DFA initially endorsed
Bernie Sanders in the 2016 presidential race after earning a record-breaking 87.9% of the vote in their online poll.
The organization switched its endorsement in July 2016 "...to stand with Bernie Sanders by joining him in formally endorsing
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
for President." Sanders has since formed his own group
Our Revolution.
Notable past DFA endorsements have included:
*
Keith Ellison for
DNC Chair in the
2017 election
*
Bernie Sanders for
U.S. Senate in Vermont and
U.S. President
*
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...
for
U.S. Senate in Illinois and
U.S. President
*
Julie Gunnigle
Julie may refer to:
* Julie (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the name
Film and television
* ''Julie'' (1956 film), an American film noir starring Doris Day
* ''Julie'' (1975 film), a Hindi film by K. S. Sethumadhava ...
for
Maricopa County Attorney
Maricopa can refer to:
Places
* Maricopa, Arizona, United States, a city
** Maricopa Freeway, a piece of I-10 in Metropolitan Phoenix
** Maricopa station, an Amtrak station in Maricopa, Arizona
* Maricopa County, Arizona, United States
* Maricop ...
*
Al Franken
Alan Stuart Franken (born May 21, 1951) is an American comedian, politician, media personality, and author who served as a United States senator from Minnesota from 2009 to 2018. He gained fame as a writer and performer on the television comed ...
for
U.S. Senate in Minnesota
*
Misty K. Snow for
U.S. Senate in Utah
*
Mark Begich
Mark Peter Begich ( ; born March 30, 1962) is an American politician who served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Alaska from 2009 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously ser ...
for
U.S. Senate in Alaska
*
Ned Lamont
Edward Miner Lamont Jr. (born January 3, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the 89th governor of Connecticut. He has served in this position since January 9, 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a Greenw ...
for
U.S. Senate in Connecticut
*
Jeff Merkley for
U.S. Senate in Oregon
*
Elizabeth Warren
Elizabeth Ann Warren ( née Herring; born June 22, 1949) is an American politician and former law professor who is the senior United States senator from Massachusetts, serving since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party and regarded as a ...
for
U.S. Senate in Massachusetts
*
Howard Dean
Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American physician, author, lobbyist, and retired politician who served as the 79th governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2005 to 2009 ...
for
DNC Chair
*
Deval Patrick for
Governor of Massachusetts
The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the chief executive officer of the government of Massachusetts. The governor is the head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonwealth's military forces.
Massachuset ...
*
Jon Tester
Raymond Jon Tester (born August 21, 1956) is an American farmer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Montana, a seat he has held since 2007. A member of the Democratic Party, Tester is the dean of Montana's congressi ...
for
U.S. Senate in Montana
*
Sheldon Whitehouse
Sheldon Whitehouse (born October 20, 1955) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Rhode Island since 2007. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States Attorney from 1993 to 1998 ...
for
U.S. Senate in Rhode Island
*
Martin Heinrich
Martin Trevor Heinrich (; born October 17, 1971) is an American businessman and politician serving as the senior United States senator from New Mexico, a seat he has held since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Heinrich served as the U.S ...
for
U.S. Representative for
New Mexico's 1st district
*Joey Novick for
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
of
Flemington,
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
*
Sam Yoon for
Boston City Council
The Boston City Council is the legislative branch of government for the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is made up of 13 members: 9 district representatives and 4 at-large members. Councillors are elected to two-year terms and there is no ...
*
Jerry McNerney
Gerald Mark McNerney (born June 18, 1951) is an American businessman, politician, and the U.S. representative for , from 2007 until 2023. He is a member of the Democratic Party. His district, numbered as the 11th district until 2013, was bas ...
for
U.S. Representative from
California's 11th District
*
Jack Markell
Jack Alan Markell (born November 26, 1960) is an American politician who currently serves as the United States ambassador to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. He previously served as the 73rd governor of Delaware from 2 ...
for
Governor of Delaware
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
*
Linda McCulloch
Linda McCulloch (born December 21, 1954) is an American politician who is formerly the secretary of state of Montana. She was the first woman to serve in that post. She left her previous post as state superintendent of public instruction due to ...
for
Montana Secretary of State
*
Debra Bowen
Debra Lynn Bowen (born October 27, 1955) is an American attorney and politician who served as the Secretary of State of California from 2007 to 2015. Previously, she was a member of the California State Legislature from 1992 to 2006. In March 20 ...
for
California Secretary of State
*
Denise Juneau
Denise Juneau (born April 5, 1967) is an American attorney, educator, and politician from the U.S. state of Montana who served as the state's Superintendent of Public Instruction from 2009 to 2017. She is a Democrat and the first female Native ...
for Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction
*
Donna Edwards
Donna Fern Edwards (born June 28, 1958) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2008 to 2017. The district included most of Prince George's County, as well as part of Anne Arundel County. She is a member of the ...
for
U.S. Representative in Maryland from
Maryland's 4th district
*
Jim Himes
James Andrew Himes (born July 5, 1966) is an American businessman and politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, he chaired the New Democrat Coalition in the 115th Congress (2017–2019).
H ...
for
U.S. Representative for
Connecticut's 4th district
*
Alan Grayson
Alan Mark Grayson (born March 13, 1958) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2009 to 2011 and from 2013 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was defeated for reelection in 2010 by Republican Daniel ...
for
U.S. Representative in Florida from
Florida's 8th district
*
Paulette Jordan for
Governor of Idaho in 2018
Political positions
Democracy for America's status on various social and economic issues places the organization strongly on the
left of the
American political spectrum. Although they often endorse and advocate for
Democratic Party candidates, DFA is also to the left of many national and state Democratic lawmakers.
In 2006, the group supported
Ned Lamont
Edward Miner Lamont Jr. (born January 3, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the 89th governor of Connecticut. He has served in this position since January 9, 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a Greenw ...
over Sen. Joseph Lieberman in
Connecticut's primary and general elections. DFA also supported
Carol Shea-Porter in her Democratic primary and
general election victory in
New Hampshire's 1st congressional district
New Hampshire's 1st congressional district covers parts of Southern New Hampshire and the eastern portion of the state. The district contains parts of Hillsborough, Rockingham, Merrimack, Grafton, and Belknap counties; and the entirety of ...
. In 2008, the group supported
Donna Edwards
Donna Fern Edwards (born June 28, 1958) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2008 to 2017. The district included most of Prince George's County, as well as part of Anne Arundel County. She is a member of the ...
of
Maryland's 4th congressional district
Maryland's 4th congressional district comprises portions of Prince George's County and Anne Arundel County. The seat is represented by Anthony Brown, a Democrat.
The district includes most of the majority-black precincts on the Maryland side o ...
.
During the
2008 Minnesota Senate election between
Norm Coleman
Norman Bertram Coleman Jr. (born August 17, 1949) is an American politician, attorney, and lobbyist. From 2003 to 2009, he served as a United States Senator for Minnesota. From 1994 to 2002, he was mayor of Saint Paul, Minnesota. First elected ...
and
Al Franken
Alan Stuart Franken (born May 21, 1951) is an American comedian, politician, media personality, and author who served as a United States senator from Minnesota from 2009 to 2018. He gained fame as a writer and performer on the television comed ...
Democracy for America aligned themselves with the
Progressive Change Campaign Committee and called their campaign "Donate a Dollar a Day to Make Norm Go Away".
Coleman lost to Franken following an official state-wide recount.
Domestic issues
Before creating this PAC, the group's founder,
Howard Dean
Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American physician, author, lobbyist, and retired politician who served as the 79th governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2005 to 2009 ...
, who already possessed a considerable platform, had strongly campaigned in favor of
universal health care
Universal health care (also called universal health coverage, universal coverage, or universal care) is a health care system in which all residents of a particular country or region are assured access to health care. It is generally organized ar ...
. Therefore, the DFA's first major campaign after the 2008 presidential election focused mainly on this issue, standing support of universal healthcare.
In 2011, DFA's main issue of interest were the rights of company employees, which was campaigned for, among other things, by promoting unions. DFA,
Progressive Change Campaign Committee (or PCCC), and several other organizations with lesser contribution levels, combined funds to spend $2.2 million canvassing about these issues, including phone calls, door-to-door campaigning, and TV ads.
DFA has also campaigned to oppose legislation that requires voters to present government-issued identification cards, birth certificates, or passports before voting.
The organization has at various times deemed the laws "excessive" and "Draconian," and has argued that the laws inhibit ordinary citizens from being able to enter the polling stations.
Furthermore, the DFA campaigns on behalf of legislation to benefit
homosexual Americans, to guard rights afforded to them through the legalization of
same-sex marriage in the United States. The organization sent volunteers to
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...
to campaign against
2009 Maine Question 1, which nullified a same-sex marriage law passed by
the state's legislature. In a related issue, DFA pushed for the repeal of
"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" laws in regards to the
U.S. military.
DFA has also run anti-
Wall Street campaigns and "Boycott BP" campaign in response to a leaky oil pipe in the
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...
that was owned by BP.
Foreign policy issues
Democracy for America supported the withdrawal of the United States from the
Iraq War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror
, image ...
.
Endorsed presidential candidates
In 2008, Democracy for America endorsed
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...
, who was then an outspoken critic of the Iraq War. In February 2009, President Obama stated unequivocally that American occupation in Iraq will end no later than August 31, 2010. DFA did not withdraw its support for Obama after he failed to do this.
In 2016, DFA endorsed
Bernie Sanders in the
2016 United States presidential election
The 2016 United States presidential election was the 58th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. The Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana governor Mike Pence defeated the Democratic ticket ...
, in accordance with the results of a poll of their supporters conducted on the DFA website.
In 2020, DFA endorsed Bernie Sanders in
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...
, also in accordance with a website poll.
Training and scholarships
DFA members at both the national and local levels have participated in numerous training programs, intended to instruct prospective candidates on running a successful political campaign. DFA's main training initiative, called the ''Campaign Academy'', consists of 16 hours of interactive workshops that bring hundreds of local activists, campaign staff and candidates together for 2 days of intensive campaign training.
Topics have included; online organizing, shutting down a campaign, canvassing and phonebanking, recruiting volunteers, how to increase voter turn out, developing a finance plan, sustaining your media presence, winning with social networks and building a grassroots army: volunteer recruitment.
"DFA Night School" is the organization's
online
In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" o ...
training program. Each session is an hour-long interactive conference call and web presentation where trainees participate and ask questions.
Netroots Nation Scholarship competition
DFA also awards scholarships to progressive or liberal
blog
A blog (a truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order s ...
gers, known as the "Netroots Nation Scholarship".
In 2010, DFA sent 60 online activists to
Netroots Nation, held in Las Vegas, NV from July 22–25.
Other sites for the
Netroots Nation Convention have included Austin, Texas, in 2008
and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 2009.
Dean Corps
In 2010, DFA sent field organizers to progressive campaigns for a program called
Dean Corps. Similar to
Russ Feingold
Russell Dana Feingold ( ; born March 2, 1953) is an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States Senator from Wisconsin from 1993 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he was its nominee in the 2016 election for the same U ...
's Progressive Patriot Corps, organizers represented an in-kind contribution to the recipient campaign. The goal is to hire, train and place field organizers on key progressive campaigns to get more progressive Democrats elected.
See also
*
America Coming Together
*
Howard Dean
Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American physician, author, lobbyist, and retired politician who served as the 79th governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2005 to 2009 ...
*
Jim Dean (activist)
James H. Dean is an American political operative who previously served as chair of Democracy for America (DFA), the nation's largest political action committee. The brother of former Vermont governor Howard Dean, DFA was founded in 2004 following ...
*
Dean Dozen
The "Dean Dozen" in American politics, was the collective term for six groups of 12 candidates endorsed by Democracy for America, the political action committee led by former Vermont governor and presidential candidate Howard Dean, in the 2004 ...
Notes
External links
*
Stand with Dr. Dean health care reform site affiliated with Democracy for America.
DFA-LinkBlog for America
{{Howard Dean
Factions in the Democratic Party (United States)
United States political action committees
Healthcare reform advocacy groups in the United States
Progressive organizations in the United States
Howard Dean
2004 establishments in Vermont