Jeff Van Drew is the candidate that locals wanted. He is the candidate that the establishment wanted. He is a state Senator. Has been a state Senator since 2008, representing a district that covers South Jersey -- a pretty large piece of territory for an urban, eastern state. He won by 10 points the first time, 20 points the second time, and 30 points the third time. He may be the best liked dentist in the state.
Debbie Mucarsel-Powell and her sisters immigrated with their mother to California from Ecuador. Twenty years later, she left California for Florida. Married to a real estate figure, she made a career raising money for non-profits and universities. Her non-profit goals became her political goals -- curb climate change and its impact, ensure comprehensive health care, and create strong communities.
Josh Harder has returned home -- to California's Central Valley. his great, great grandfather came to the Central Valley to farm. Josh Harder, himself, grew up in Turlock and Modesto. After graduating from Stanford, he worked as a venture capitalist at Boston. He left to work in Africa with the Gates Foundation and others. He organized small farmers in Kenya and Uganda. Harder returned to the States for a joint MBA and public policy degree at the Harvard Business School and the Kennedy school. From there he became vice president of San Francisco-based Bessemer Venture Partners - creating a close link for himself with Silicon Valley.
Brad Ashford wants his seat back. A former Republican who found the party moving away from him, he became a state legislator as a Democrat. He ran for mayor of Omaha as a Democrat. He ran for Congress as a Democrat in 2014 and won. In 2016, he lost to a Republican by a point.
Conor Lamb is the Democratic nominee for the special election on March 13. He is local -- University of Pennsylvania (where he was a Howard Dean supporter as an undergraduate) and University of Pennsylvania Law School. He comes from a successful political family. His grandfather was the Democratic Majority Leader in the Pennsylvania state Senate and a Bob Casey cabinet member. His Uncle Michael is the City Controller for Pittsburgh. Conor Lamb was in the military. He was a Captain in the Marines. as a prosecutor in Okinawa, primarily prosecuting cases of sexual assault. He remains a member of the reserves. He is a prosecutor in civilian life, as well.
Dean Phillips is a candidate of Minneapolis' western suburbs. A wealthy CEO, a frequent Democratic donor, he has almost as frequently declined to run for office. HIs father, Artie Pfeffer, died fighting in Vietnam when Phillips was six months old. His widowed mother married into the wealthy Phillips family. Adopted son of the family, Dean Phillips was educated for business and was a successful CEO. He says the real family business has been philanthropy. He looks like a pretty good politician, too.
Dan McCready is a great fit for this business oriented district. He joined the marines after finishing at Duke. He had been freshman during 9/11 and had decided on military service. His core memories of the war include leading sixty-five marines into battle during the 2007 surge and being baptized in the Euphrates River. From the Marines, he entered Harvard Business School. He worked for a while as a consultant for McKinsey, then he and a fellow Marine started a business in Charlotte creating solar farms. Now they are owners of the second largest solar farm company in the country. Dan McCready was not satisfied with just one business. He started This Land, a business that sells hand made American goods online.
Max Rose received an education from the military. He also received an education at elite institutions (Wesleyan, the London School of Economics, some time at Oxford). He came back to New York to work in health care. Running for Congress is an extension of his vision of public service. He demonstrates toughness and a commitment to address what people need on Staten Island and throughout the country.
Chrissy Houlahan was a captain in the US Air Force -- three years active duty, thirteen in the Inactive Reserve. She has been a businesswoman, working as the Chief Operating Officer and transforming a start up into a national apparel and footwear brand. She founded and served as COO of B-Lab,"a nonprofit organization that serves a global movement of people using business as a force for good." For variety, she worked as a chemistry teacher in North Philadelphia with Teach for America and served as COO/CFO of an early childhood education nonprofit.
Ann Kirkpatrick wants to return to Congress. She's a professional politician who has won some and lost some. She was elected to Congress for AZ 01 in 2006, 2008, 2012, and 2014. She lost to a Republican in 2010. Rather than face her again, the Republican ran and won in AZ 04 in 2012 while she was elected. Kirkpatrick ran for the Senate in 2016 -- against John McCain. McCain won by thirteen points. She would rather be working.