To: Cenk Uygur
Tell Cenk Uygur not to hand CD25 back to Steve Knight
Please withdraw from the race for Congressional District 25
Why is this important?
I live in Congressional District 25 (CD25). I started this Petition because Cenk Uygur’s entry into this race will splinter Democratic support, flip the seat back to red, and hand it back to Steve Knight.
• Thousands of CD25 voters worked tirelessly to flip the district blue in 2018. Cenk did nothing to help – but he has no qualms about flipping it back to red in exchange for headlines. It took a years-long effort to flip CA25. We worked tirelessly to achieve this goal: registering thousands of voters, protesting, knocking on doors, and fielding candidates for seats that a Democrat had never before been expected to win. We succeeded when we elected Congresswoman Katie Hill, a lifelong resident of the District and someone with a deep understanding of District issues and concerns (https://www.dailynews.com/2018/11/07/election-2018-steve-hill-concedes-democrat-katie-hill-wins-the-25th-congressional-district/). Unfortunately, Congresswoman Hill has resigned, and the Governor set a date to hold Special Election on March 3, 2020 to elect her replacement (https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2019-11-15/katie-hill-california-special-election-steve-knight). Cenk’s campaign is dismissive of the people and organizations that made our gains possible. Parachuting in three months before the election and expecting local progressives to fall in line with an outsider’s campaign is an affront to local activists and voters.
• We have a candidate who lives in the district, who knows the needs of our voters and who has the support of a wide array of voters. In that same election, through the same tireless effort, we also flipped California Assembly District 38 from red to blue, by electing Christy Smith, another long-term resident with deep knowledge of our issues and needs (https://signalscv.com/2019/10/assemblywoman-smith-launches-campaign-for-congress/). Christy has proven that she will work tirelessly for us. She has demonstrated the ability to achieve legislative success on issues that matter to us. And she’s done all of this while maintaining the respect and support of a wide coalition of voters. I believe Christy is our best chance to keep this seat blue in a “purple” district like ours.
• Cenk is an outsider. Outsiders do not do well in CD25. Voters in our district have a deep and long-standing preference for local candidates — people who live here, preferably those who have lived here a long time, and ideally people who were born and raised here. In 2016, another out-of-district Democratic candidate, Brian Caforio, ran for this seat and lost badly to Republican Steve Knight (https://www.dailynews.com/2016/11/09/election-2016-gops-knight-wins-re-election-in-25th-district-race/). Caforio ran again last year, after moving into the district to mute the “carpetbagger” criticism, and sought the support of local activists and leaders. Despite moving here and having greater name recognition when the campaign began, Caforio lost to lifelong “local gal” Katie Hill in the primary (https://signalscv.com/2018/06/hill-knight-to-face-off-in-november/). Simply put, our voters support local candidates.
• Cenk has said and written offensive and unacceptable comments about women and minorities. Cenk is viewed by some as one of the nation’s leading voices in advocating for progressive policy and ideas. He is also viewed as helping to shift national public perception on critical issues like Medicare for All and the Green New Deal (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2017/01/23/progressives-launch-justice-democrats-to-counter-primary-corporate-legislators/). Unfortunately, he also has a long history of making sexually explicit and demeaning comments about women (including calling young girls “whores in training”), on his blog and elsewhere. Most of these posts are from the early 2000s. Uygur, then in his mid-thirties, has apologized for them, saying “I had not yet matured and I was still a conservative who thought that stuff was politically incorrect and edgy.” Yet he was still tweeting about women’s bodies in very explicit ways in 2013. (https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/dec/22/cenk-uygur-young-turks-founder-apologizes-insensit/)
Justice Democrats, a progressive group, removed Cenk Uygur from its board and cut ties with Uygur and Young Turks co-founder David Koller in the wake of racist and sexist statements and writing. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/justice-democrats-ousts-cenk-uygur_n_5a3eb4d1e4b025f99e178181
Running for Congress in a purple district like CA25 demands a certain set of skills. Winning candidates here must build coalitions that unite groups with different and sometimes competing objectives; they must then work for consensus among these groups to implement effective solutions. Progressive views aside, Cenk Uygur has not demonstrated any knowledge or understanding of local issues, nor respect for the District’s diverse population. As someone who has first-hand knowledge of the needs, history and political challenges of our community, I am urging Cenk to end his campaign in CA25. If he remains in the race, he will split the Democratic vote, which could result in placing two Republicans on the ballot and no Democrat.
Please sign my petition asking Cenk to withdraw from the CD25 race.
In solidarity,
Cindy Cole
• Thousands of CD25 voters worked tirelessly to flip the district blue in 2018. Cenk did nothing to help – but he has no qualms about flipping it back to red in exchange for headlines. It took a years-long effort to flip CA25. We worked tirelessly to achieve this goal: registering thousands of voters, protesting, knocking on doors, and fielding candidates for seats that a Democrat had never before been expected to win. We succeeded when we elected Congresswoman Katie Hill, a lifelong resident of the District and someone with a deep understanding of District issues and concerns (https://www.dailynews.com/2018/11/07/election-2018-steve-hill-concedes-democrat-katie-hill-wins-the-25th-congressional-district/). Unfortunately, Congresswoman Hill has resigned, and the Governor set a date to hold Special Election on March 3, 2020 to elect her replacement (https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2019-11-15/katie-hill-california-special-election-steve-knight). Cenk’s campaign is dismissive of the people and organizations that made our gains possible. Parachuting in three months before the election and expecting local progressives to fall in line with an outsider’s campaign is an affront to local activists and voters.
• We have a candidate who lives in the district, who knows the needs of our voters and who has the support of a wide array of voters. In that same election, through the same tireless effort, we also flipped California Assembly District 38 from red to blue, by electing Christy Smith, another long-term resident with deep knowledge of our issues and needs (https://signalscv.com/2019/10/assemblywoman-smith-launches-campaign-for-congress/). Christy has proven that she will work tirelessly for us. She has demonstrated the ability to achieve legislative success on issues that matter to us. And she’s done all of this while maintaining the respect and support of a wide coalition of voters. I believe Christy is our best chance to keep this seat blue in a “purple” district like ours.
• Cenk is an outsider. Outsiders do not do well in CD25. Voters in our district have a deep and long-standing preference for local candidates — people who live here, preferably those who have lived here a long time, and ideally people who were born and raised here. In 2016, another out-of-district Democratic candidate, Brian Caforio, ran for this seat and lost badly to Republican Steve Knight (https://www.dailynews.com/2016/11/09/election-2016-gops-knight-wins-re-election-in-25th-district-race/). Caforio ran again last year, after moving into the district to mute the “carpetbagger” criticism, and sought the support of local activists and leaders. Despite moving here and having greater name recognition when the campaign began, Caforio lost to lifelong “local gal” Katie Hill in the primary (https://signalscv.com/2018/06/hill-knight-to-face-off-in-november/). Simply put, our voters support local candidates.
• Cenk has said and written offensive and unacceptable comments about women and minorities. Cenk is viewed by some as one of the nation’s leading voices in advocating for progressive policy and ideas. He is also viewed as helping to shift national public perception on critical issues like Medicare for All and the Green New Deal (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2017/01/23/progressives-launch-justice-democrats-to-counter-primary-corporate-legislators/). Unfortunately, he also has a long history of making sexually explicit and demeaning comments about women (including calling young girls “whores in training”), on his blog and elsewhere. Most of these posts are from the early 2000s. Uygur, then in his mid-thirties, has apologized for them, saying “I had not yet matured and I was still a conservative who thought that stuff was politically incorrect and edgy.” Yet he was still tweeting about women’s bodies in very explicit ways in 2013. (https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/dec/22/cenk-uygur-young-turks-founder-apologizes-insensit/)
Justice Democrats, a progressive group, removed Cenk Uygur from its board and cut ties with Uygur and Young Turks co-founder David Koller in the wake of racist and sexist statements and writing. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/justice-democrats-ousts-cenk-uygur_n_5a3eb4d1e4b025f99e178181
Running for Congress in a purple district like CA25 demands a certain set of skills. Winning candidates here must build coalitions that unite groups with different and sometimes competing objectives; they must then work for consensus among these groups to implement effective solutions. Progressive views aside, Cenk Uygur has not demonstrated any knowledge or understanding of local issues, nor respect for the District’s diverse population. As someone who has first-hand knowledge of the needs, history and political challenges of our community, I am urging Cenk to end his campaign in CA25. If he remains in the race, he will split the Democratic vote, which could result in placing two Republicans on the ballot and no Democrat.
Please sign my petition asking Cenk to withdraw from the CD25 race.
In solidarity,
Cindy Cole