Dear Lucas,
Well, it was a night we won't soon forget: we kept our majority in the Senate with a huge victory for Barbara Boxer, but we lost the House and some of the amazing women you've helped elect. I know that you've all put so much into supporting our candidates this cycle, so I wanted to share some initial thoughts with you.
Midterms are usually tough, but this year's was historic because of the challenges facing our country. On top of an economy that's still causing real pain to Americans across the nation, we faced months of seemingly endless vitriol and just plain lies, funded by secretive corporate money.
Despite the right-wing onslaught, despite the third-party spending to viciously attack our candidates, we held the Senate -- no small feat. And I can't emphasize this enough: the victories of Barbara Boxer in California, Terri Sewell in Alabama, and Betty Sutton in Ohio (to name a few) are incredibly important. We helped elect the first African-American woman from Alabama -- making history -- and in total elected four women of color. The support of the EMILY's List community, in every sense, was instrumental to those wins -- I know it, and the candidates know it.
It's hard to express the depth of gratitude I have for our community. You fought with us, and you fought hard, even during the bleakest moments. When I think of all of you, I remember how we stood with Julie Lassa, who braved the most personal of attacks. I remember the support you gave to Ann McLane Kuster, to Mary Jo Kilroy, to Betsy Markey, and to many others. This culture, this community of ours -- it's powerful, it's meaningful, and it transcends the often heart-breaking cyclical nature of politics.
There's no other way to put it: losses hurt, and it's going to be painful for a while. We all remember the losses, but I have absolutely no regrets about how hard we fought. That's what we're about. Even while the disappointment still stings, we get back to work, just like EMILY's List has done for 25 years. And we could not be more proud of Speaker Nancy Pelosi's historic leadership: in addition to breaking barriers for women, she led the 111th House of Congress to great accomplishments, and we're grateful.
Just as this election has been one for the books, so have the accomplishments of EMILY's List -- frankly, I'm still astounded by some of them. We've grown phenomenally: more members than ever before, record-breaking contribution levels, a surging online presence -- I could go on. The growth of our already amazing institution will pay off beyond imagination.
So, where do we go from here? First, we stand by our mission: electing pro-choice Democratic women. We push for even more growth, an investment in the future of EMILY's List and our power to elect women. And we're going to dig right in and gear up for the next round. Because that's what you do: pick up, and get ready to do the hard work that needs to be done.
I cannot thank each and every one of you enough. You are why I'm so proud to lead this organization -- why I love saying that I work for EMILY's List. Thank you, so much, for all that you've done.
Sincerely,
Stephanie Schriock
President