Political Note #133 Gil Cisneros CA CD 39

Gil Cisneros running for Congress because he was lucky. In 2010, he won the lottery -- $266 million.He had had a productive life without the lottery. When he won the lottery, he had retired from the navy and was a shipping and distribution manager. he started nonprofits focused on helping Latino kids succeed in school. He started scholarship funds for those kids who did succeed in school. He studied education. He switched political parties; became a Democrat. He went into politics.

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Political Note #112 TJ Cox CA CD 21

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.

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Political Note #90 Josh Harder CA 10

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.

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Political Note #69 Laura Curran NY Executive Nassau County

If a Democrat is elected Nassau County Executive, that would be another sign from Long Island about Democrats chances to take the New York Senate. Laura Curran knows her way around. She has been a school board member and a county legislator. More important, she was a reporter for the NY Daily News and NY Post. She also learned a lot working in Tom Suozzi's press office when he was County Executive.

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Political Note #32 Doug Jones AL US Senate

Doug Jones is a distinguished attorney in Birmingham. His practice includes white collar criminal litigation and civil litigation. Since 2004 he has served as the appointed master for the environmental clean up of PCB’s in the Anniston, Alabama area. Five months after taking office as US Attorney under President Bill Clinton, Doug Jones received national attention when a bomb exploded at a Birmingham women’s health clinic, killing a police officer and maiming a nurse. While he was US Attorney, he coordinated the task force (the FBI, local police, and other law enforcement) that eventually led to Eric Rudolf being captured and pleading guilty... . Jone has prosecuted murderers who opposed the Civil Rights movement and murderers who opposed the women's rights movement.

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