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August 18th , 2024 Len’s Political Note #664 Amish Shah Arizona 01
2024 General Election
There is one big disadvantage to defeating seven opponents in a primary. That disadvantage is enhanced if the victory is in August. The disadvantage? You have spent your money.
Amish Shah raised a total of $1. 5 million dollars. The Republican incumbent raised $2.5 million dollars. On July 10, though, Amish Shah had $200,000 available for the rest of the campaign. The incumbent, David Schweikert, had $1.5 million.
In Arizona, it is not a particular handicap for a politician to be from somewhere other than Arizona. Nearly 70% of the people in Arizona were born elsewhere. Amish Shah was born and grew up in Chicago where he had hard times and then better times.
The child of parents who had come to this country to study engineering, one was Hindu, the other Jain, Amish Shah was sent of Catholic school from kindergarten through high school. He credits two teachers for rescuing him from susceptibility to bullying and helping him through their kindness, generosity, and encouragement. Successful in high school, he went to Northwestern. After getting a BA at Northwestern, he got a medical degree there.
Amish Shah worked for a consulting firm, got a Master’s Degree in public health and did a residency in emergency medicine in what he describes as New York City’s busiest Level I Trauma Center. He taught at Mount Sinai Hospital’s medical school and made a connection with the New York Jets football team and the NFL working on trauma injuries to players. The NFL experience led him to a University of Arizona sports medicine fellowship and his further interest in sports medicine. While working at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, he saw the possibility of affecting health policy by running for state Rep in the prosperous district where he lives. He was a Democrat in the legislature, though he voted in the 2016 Republican presidential. Primary – presumably to vote against Donald Trump.
In the state legislature, Amish Shah made some small dent in improving health care in Arizona. His legislation simplified the system of obtaining parental consent for medical procedures, allowing a prior general consent to be used for HIV testing, for instance. He also addressed local issues, leading an effort that would allow cities to ban fireworks after 11:00pm.
Election to Congress would allow Amish Shah to address larger issues. Even after adoption of Obamacare, he is interested in achieving more universal access to health care. He describes the United States system of providing medical care as being much more expensive than the systems of other developed countries while being less effective. He notes that Americans do not live as long, on average, as the people in the countries in the European Union.
In the Democratic primary, he discovered and Arizona discovered that he was effective at politics. He committed to a ground game and knocked on doors. He spoke to constituents. He sent them personally written cards. When there were complaints that some of the numerous yard signs on his behalf had been placed without permission, he opened up his records about permissions sought and granted. He defeated candidates who had establishment support. He defeated candidates who were wealthier than he was. He defeated candidates who were more likely to attack their opponents.
Now Amish Shah gets a chance to see if he can raise enough money to organize a campaign and to defeat an incumbent Republican. He may not have to attack the incumbent. His ethical failings have been public and are well known.
Congressman David Schweikert paid a fine of $50,000 in 2020 for nearly a dozen campaign finance violations after he was investigated by the House Ethics Committee. In 2022, the Federal Elections Commission fined him $125,000 for misappropriating campaign funds. If Schweikert’s fines were to continue to increase at that rate, he will pay some agency over $300,000 in fines in 2024. Eventually his fines might exceed a million dollars.
Do not let Schweikart’s fines get out of hand. Replace him. Amish Shah is a reasonable man who wants to focus on policy. He is already being attacked for his interest in universally accessible health care, for his support for those seeking asylum in the United States to get drivers’ licenses, and, no doubt, will be attacked for supporting women’s desire to receive the reproductive health care they want and need.
Do your share to help vote David Schweikart out of the House. DONATE to the Amish Shah campaign.
Other races to support
Senate races in the southwest
Arizona US Senate Congressman Ruben Gallego grew up poor in Chicago. He went to Harvard, moved to Phoenix with his girlfriend (now his former wife who is mayor of Phoenix), joined the marines, returned to run for state rep and then for Congress. Among the more progressive Democrats, he has been an advocate for Native Americans. Defending a seat that was previously won by a Democrat, the most recent polls show him ahead of former Fox Journalist by 6 and 11 points. On July 10 FEC reports indicated he was leading in the financial race by more — $8.2 million to Lake’s #2.1 million. DONATE TO RUBEN GALLEGO. Keep him in the lead. See Len’s Political Note #544
Nevada Incumbent Jacky Rosen moved to Nevada after she finished her BA at the University of Minnesota. Nevada was where her parents retired. She developed competences in technology and ran her own consulting firm, married a doctor, and was so active in the state’s largest synagogue that she served, on and off, as its president over a 20 year period. Harry Reid recruited her to run for Congress. After a successful term, he asked her to run for the Senate. Pragmatic on issues, she is admired for her capacity to listen empathetically. The most recent polls find her leading wounded war veteran Sam Brown by between 3 and 5 points. He has made his opposition to abortion central as his wife speaks about her regret about having had an abortion. On June 30, Jacky Rosen was leading Sam Brown in the financial race $9.5 million to $3.1 million. DONATE TO JACKY ROSEN. Keep her in the lead. See Len’s Political Note #564
New Mexico Incumbent Martin Heinrich grew up in Nevada, the son of a union member utility worker who, in turn, was the son of a German immigrant farmer. He moved to New Mexico after graduating from the University of Missouri, but found the tech work he was doing dull. His year tracking wolves for AmeriCorps to study the need to reintroduce wolves was transformative. His work – educating youth, consulting on public affairs, or in elected office, whether on the Albuquerque City Council or in the US Senate, has been devoted to conservation. The most recent poll finds him leading Nella Dominici, hedge fund official and daughter of a former New Mexico Senator, by 6 points. He also led in the financial race on June 30, but his $4.8 million to her $2.1 million does not mean as much when she can reach in her pocket and pull out $2 million if she feels like it. DONATE TO MARTIN HEINRICH. Make his lead bigger. See Len’s Political Note #654
Texas Congressman Colin Allred could finally be the Democrat who makes a breakthrough in Texas. The son of a white, single mother and a Black father, he grew up in Texas, played football for Baylor and for Tennessee in the NFL. After an injury he got a JD from the University of California, Berkeley. He worked in the federal government, then practiced law in Texas in a large firm before his election to Congress, where he has had what is generally described as a record as a moderate. He is seeking to defeat Ted Cruz – who is often described as the most disliked member of the Senate. Help Colin Allred win this race. DONATE. VOLUNTEER See Len’s Political Note #560
House races in the southwest
Arizona 06 Kirsten Engel, a graduate of Brown with a law degree from Northwestern, is a named professor of law at the University of Arizona, a nationally recognized expert in legal issues related to the climate, and a former state rep and state senator in Arizona. In 2022, she ran for Arizona 06 and lost to Juan Ciscomani, an aide to former governor Doug Ducey, by a point and a half. In a Democratic funded poll in July, Kirsten Engel led Ciscomani by a point. This will be a close race in 2024. Kirsten Engel had a modest lead in the financial race on July 10 — $3.2 million to $2.7 million. Stretch the financial lead and help Kirsten Engel win in November. DONATE. VOLUNTEER See Len’s Political Note #558
Nevada 01. Dina Titus is involved in a race which is impossible to predict. Elected in 2008, defeated in 2010, elected again and in 2012 and in every race after that, Dina Titus is a quirky Member of Congress. She managed to skip graduating from high school before going to college and came to Nevada from the South to be an academic, not a politician. One of the few Nevada politicians unconnected to Harry Reid, she was profanely angry when she was redistricted into a competitive district in 2022. She, nevertheless, won by over 5 points that year. There are no polls for 2024. She has two puzzling opponents. Despite spending $100,000 Republican Mark Robertson won the Republican primary, defeating an opponent who spent $1.8 million. Ronald Quince, born in the Philippines, with his online BA in accounting from the University of Phoenix turned tax advising into a thriving consultancy in everything from real estate to investing, withdrew from the Republican primary to run as a Nonpartisan (independent in most other states). He reportedon July 10 having $1.4 million to Dina Titus’s $1.4 million to Mark Robertson’s remaining $100,000. Help Dina Titus win this complicated race. DONATE. VOLUNTEER. See Len’s Political Note #583
Nevada 02 Independent Greg Kidd graduated from Brown and continued on to Yale, Stanford, and Harvard’s Kennedy School to get technology training and master’s degrees in business and public policy, to learn a bit about business consulting, and then to successfully launch business after business, making those businesses prosper and making a fortune for himself. A Republican in Nevada’s lone Republican congressional district, he is critical of his “seven term opponent” Mark Amodei, he is running as a Nonpartisan (independent) while the Democrats have no candidate at all. An advocate for reproductive rights, for an Alaska-like permanent fund from extraction and energy industries that would give money back to Arizona residents, for small business loans for small businesses, for a digital ID system, for revamping the tax system on which education is based, and for the pro-business CHIPS act and infrastructure bills passed by the Biden administration. Greg Kidd is not asking for money, so I will not ask you to donate. You could VOLUNTEER, though. See Len’s Political Note #663
New Mexico 02 Gabe Vasquez is completing his first term in a seat that has regularly flipped from Republican to Democratic and back. He is a devoted, blue collar conservationist, in his role as a city councilor and in Congress. His opponent, Yvette Herrell is a Native American and a realtor. Gabe Vasquez defeated her in 2022 by less than a percentage point. There are no polls in 2024. There is a financial race which Gabe Vazquez is winning. On June 30, he led $2.7 million to $1.4 million. Help Gabe Vasquez extend that financial lead and stay in Congress. DONATE VOLUNTEER. See Len’s political note #536
Texas 15 Challenger Michelle Vallejo. returned home after graduating from Columbia to help her mom manage her flea market business and to advocate for her community. She helped found a chapter of New Leaders Council STX Frontera and an annual conference in San Antonio to support businesswomen and entrepreneurs – Hustle & Socialize. She ran for Congress in 2022, got no national support, and lost to realtor and now incumbent Monica De La Cruz. Michelle Vallejo has received more support this election, but her $700,000 for the home stretch is only a third of the incumbent’s $2.1 million. Help Michelle Vallejo make a true run at the incumbent. DONATE. VOLUNTEER See Len’s Political Note #567
WE ALSO HAVE A PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION TO WIN
Kamala Harris and Tim Walz
As we look toward November, 2024, Help sustain the enthusiasm for the Kamala Harris and Tim Walzcampaign. They are a phenomenon and have raised a lot of money. They will need still more resources to win. Every donation, large or small, makes a difference. Larger donations mean more money for the campaign. The media also counts the number of small donations as a measure of enthusiasm for the candidate. Make a small donation if you cannot afford a large one. DONATE TO KAMALA HARRIS AND TIM WALZ
