Ortiz Jones grew up poor. She was raised in public housing by her single mother, an immigrant from the Philipines. She became Director of Investment for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative under President Obama and, briefly, under President Trump. She has attracted a national following. If this were a special election, she would be the next big thing.
Zelmore Myrie's mother was an immigrant from Costa Rica. She raised him mostly alone, focusing on ensuring that he get the best possible education -- Brooklyn Tech. Fordham, Cornell Law School. He got a job is a large, New York firm, but his interest was politics.
Tina Smith has been involved in Minnesota politics for a long time. She came to Minnesota from Arizona to take a marketing job at General Mills. She later worked on her own as a marketing consultant. She also worked for the Planned Parenthood office serving Minnesota and the Dakotas. She worked as chief of staff for mayors and governors, ran political campaigns for governors. Now she is running for the US Senate, seeking to get elected on her own.
David Shapiro's father prospered building houses during Florida's continuing housing boom. David Shapiro went to law school. He stayed local. He thrived, as well. Despite his prosperity, no one accuses him of being a member of the elite. He is a personal injury lawyer; has been for over thirty years. The firm has ten offices on the West Coast of Florida none in New York or Washington. Personal injury lawyers are rarely accused of being members of the elite.
Sean Casten went to Middlebury College in Vermont. With his science degree, he worked at Tufts medical school outside of Boston in a cancer study. From there he went to Dartmouth in New Hampshire where he got two Master's Degrees related to engineering. For three years,Sean Casten worked as a consultant for Arthur D. Little on clean energy. Then he bought a business -- Turbostream Corp. He was President and CEO of a business that custom built fuel efficient heat and power plant. He sold the business, started a new one in Illinois Recycled Energy Development, and created an advocacy organization on behalf of energy companies like his.
TJ Cox had a career in international project management and construction. After he returned home to the Central Valley of California, he founded Central Valley NMTC Fund (CVNF). That is a certified community development entity which uses a federal New Markets Tax Credit program to encourage economic development in disadvantaged communities and neighborhoods.
Republicans complain that Shelley Mayer is an insider. Shelley Mayer is an insider. She worked in Robert Abram's Attorney General office, was senior counsel for the National State Attorney General Program at Columbia, was vice president of government and community affairs for Continuum Health Partners, and served as chief counsel to the senate Democrats -- all before being elected to the Assembly. She is a state representative. She promises, in the Senate, a cleaner political atmosphere in Albany, stronger ethics requirements, more effective ways to address sexual harassment.
Forty six years old, Gretchen Whitmer spent fifteen of those years in the Michigan legislature representing East Lansing, She was five years in the House, then filled a vacancy to move to the Senate. During her final four years, until she was term limited out, she was Senate Minority Leader. She was a forceful leader in difficult times.
Dana Balter needs some help. She doesn't have much money. She will figure that out. She has figured everything else out. Unless some new Democrat shows up with a lot of money, she has the nomination for NY 24 wrapped up. The County Democratic Committees in each county in the district have endorsed her. Her principal opponent left the race. Beating the Republican incumbent is another story.
Mel Hall went to Taylor University and Seminary. He graduated as a Methodist minister and volunteered to be sent to Detroit. With a wife and, eventually, two young boys, he served in one of Detroit's poorest neighborhoods for seven years. Mel Hall left Detroit with a new understanding of the world, ready to do something different. He became, as he tells the story, employee number 34 of the start up medical care firm Press Ganey. Ultimately, he owned and ran the company.