
Most of the national attention may be on the 2020 presidential race, but voters across the country will go to the polls on Tuesday to pick representatives including governors and state legislators and vote on statewide ballot measures.
Among the groups with a laser focus on Tuesday’s elections: Forward Majority, an up-and-coming super PAC that is trying to win seats in state legislatures for Democratic candidates. This off-year election can have a decade-long impact, says Vicky Hausman, a cofounder of Forward Majority.
In 2017—the year it was founded—Forward Majority says it helped flip 15 seats in the Virginia state legislature, which it claims is the biggest swing in that state’s legislature in over 100 years. Doubling down on its strategy, Forward Majority has been pitching its cause to venture capitalists, hedge fund managers and Wall Street as one of the best political investments they can make in the age of Trump.
So far, it’s working. Since 2017, Forward Majority has raised over $10 million, according to federal filings and data from the Center for Responsive Politics. The organization, which has 18 employees and is based in New York City, has channeled money to over 130 races in seven states and helped Democratic candidates flip 58 seats from Republicans in 2018.