Today's guest: Texas State Rep. James Talarico – district 50 Check out our Website – localselectionpodcast.com We now have fabulous merch! If you want everyone to know you think Local Representation is Sexy then you owe it to yourself to wear it on a t-shirt! (or mug or notebook or stickers etc) Follow James on the socials! You will be glad you did…

Ep. 24 – Helena Hernandez, Director of Public Policy at Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, DC; and Karen Nelson, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Maryland Check out our Website – localselectionpodcast.com We have fabulous merch! If you want everyone to know you think Local Representation is Sexy then for goodness' sake wear it on a t-shirt!…

Ep. 23 – Georgia State Representative Park Cannon Recorded in a living room in Atlanta, GA "This idea of queering politics – it’s been fun. We’ve had drag show fundraisers for campaigns. Yes we have." – Park Cannon You can order a copy of Park’s book, The Universal Guide to Running for Office Here’s more info on the recently enacted gerrymandered G…

Shiva Rajbhandari Recorded via video conferencing Please consider supporting us on Patreon and help make this series sustainable Check out our Website – localselectionpodcast.com Check out the fabulous merch! Follow Shiva on the socials! You will be glad you did. Twitter: @_Shiva_R Instagram: @shiva_rajbhandari Further reading: Idaho’s Far Right Su…

Kurt Thigpen – First Out LGBTQ School Board Member in Nevada Recorded at Ace Studios, Reno, NV Check out our Website – localselectionpodcast.com for fabulous merchand our Patreon! It helps make this podcast sustainable! Follow [guest] on the socials! You will be glad you did. Twitter: @KurtThigpen Instagram: @KurtThigpen Links: Kurt’s resignation o…

Gabby Salinas, former candidate for TN state legislature Recorded live at Moma BBQ, Memphis, TN "I think people power is extremely important." – Gabby Salinas Please consider supporting us on Patreon and help make this series sustainable Check out our Website – localselectionpodcast.comand fabulous merch Follow Gabby Salinas on the socials! You wil…

Mauree Turner, Oklahoma State Rep. House District 88 Recorded live at Sincerely Coffee Roasters, Oklahoma City, OK "Oklahoma’s not a red state, but its voice is real red." – Mauree Turner Please consider supporting us on Patreon and help make this series sustainable Check out our Website – localselectionpodcast.com We now have fabulous merch! If yo…

Kelly Krout, candidate for Arkansas Lieutenant Governor Recorded live in Kelly’s home, Atlanta, GA “So much of the crap we saw go down in the Arkansas state legislature is not giving every single human equal dignity, and that bothers me at a core level,” – Kelly Krout Please consider supporting us on Patreon and help make this series sustainable Ch…

Bee Nguyen, Candidate for Georgia Secretary of State Recorded live in Bee’s home, Atlanta, GA "We are battling efforts to subvert democracy." – Bee Nguyen Please consider supporting us on Patreon and help make this series sustainable Check out our Website – localselectionpodcast.com We now have fabulous merch! If you want everyone to know you think…

Jecorey Arthur, Louisville Metro Council Member District 4 Recorded live in Jecorey’s council office, downtown Louisville "I think of politics almost in the same way that I think of brushing your teeth. You should do it at least twice a day." – Jecorey Arthur Please consider supporting us on Patreon and help make this series sustainable Check out o…

Stephe Koontz, Doraville, Georgia City Councilmember Interviewed in English Oak Park, Doraville, Georgia “I became the first transgender person in the southeastern United States to win a contested,” – Stephe Koontz Please consider supporting us on Patreon and help make this series sustainable Check out our Website – localselectionpodcast.com We now…

Ep. 14 London Lamar, Tennessee State Representative, district 91 "Two things that I always want us to go into 2022 having: Grace and Accountability." – London Lamar Follow Rep. Lamar on the socials! You will be glad you did. Twitter: @RepLamar Instagram: @LondonLamarTN Some links to things we talked about: --Tennessee’s redistricting that combines …

Anna Eskamani, Florida State Representative District 47 "When you’re most afraid to speak is when you must speak." –Anna Eskamani Please consider supporting us on Patreon and help make this series sustainable Check out our Website – localselectionpodcast.com We now have fabulous merch! If you want everyone to know you think Local Representation is …

Nida Allam, Durham County Commissioner "No one can tell you to wait your turn. No one can tell you that you can't do it." - Nida Allam Please consider supporting us on Patreon and help make this series sustainable Here’s an article about the study I mentioned about North Carolina no longer qualifying as a functional democracy. The study’s author, A…

Jocelyn Benson, Michigan Secretary of State Please consider supporting us on Patreon and help make this series sustainable Check out our Website – localselectionpodcast.com We now have fabulous merch! If you want everyone to know you think Local Representation is Sexy then you owe it to yourself to wear it on a t-shirt! (or mug or notebook or stick…

Christina Haswood, Kansas State Representative, House District 10 "How many times in this room of the House of the Chamber are the discussions that try to take and dehumanize Indigenous peoples and Native Americans? I was like, man, whatever they tried to do in this room, it didn’t work. It failed. I’m here." – Christina Haswood Please consider sup…

Katie Rosenberg, Mayor of Wausau, Wisconsin "I know we have the philosophical debates, but at the end of the day it’s like: do we care about our neighbors or do we not?" – Katie Rosenberg Follow Katie on the socials! You will be glad you did. Twitter: @katierosenberg Here’s the website for Mayors for a Guaranteed Income. Here’s an NPR article with …

Lorena González, Seattle City Council President and Candidate for Mayor of Seattle "Seattle is an example of how you can be reforming your police department for 12 years and still get a knee on the neck when you’re protesting." – Lorena González If you like what you heard here today, please consider supporting us on Patreon and help make this serie…

Madinah Wilson-Anton, Delaware State Representative - district 26 "They thought we were joke candidates, they didn’t think we had a shot at all. And then to see all of us sweep out incumbants? People were like – oh crap. Maybe people actually want the things that are on their websites. Maybe we should act differently. And that’s real power." – Madi…

Santa Claus, North Pole City Council, Alaska "That whole love vs. fear dynamic that kept popping up through my different careers." - Santa Claus You can't follow (this) Santa on social media, as awesome as that would be, but he does have a website you can visit: santaclausnorthpolealaska.com For more background on some of the stats I mention re: th…

Follow on Twitter: @LocalSelection and Instagram: @LocalSelectionPodcast Today's episode features *gasp* two guests who are not elected officials. We're talking about activism, and moments of "gateway activism". How we encourage others and ourselves to notice our relative privileges and turn holiday charity aimed at the hardship of the moment into …

Leslie Herod, Colorad State Rep Recorded on location at Honey Hill Café in Denver, CO "The best of us looks out for each of us." - Leslie Herod Follow Leslie on the socials! You will be glad you did. Twitter: @LeslieHerod Instagram: @LeslieHerod Follow US for more local democracy info around the country and bts shots: Twitter: @LocalSelection Insta…

"The courage given to others to do what feels scary, and uncomfortable, and unpopular." Follow us! Instagram: @LocalSelectionPodcast Twitter: @LocalSelection Megan Hunt, Nebraska State Senator for Nebraska's 8th District (Omaha) Twitter: @NebraskaMegan Instagram: @nebraskamegan (gov't) @402meg (all purpose) @shopfivenine (her business which you sho…

"Indigenous Woman Coming Through!" - Gabriella Cázares-Kelly Follow us! Instagram: @LocalSelectionPodcast Twitter: @LocalSelection Gabriella Cázares-Kelly, candidate for Pima County Recorder, Arizona Twitter: @gabriella_for Instagram: @gabriellaforrecorder (you should totally follow her, she is active and endearing) Intro There are few crimes I hav…

"Even after Nov. 3rd, we have to make sure that civic engagement is at the top of our list" - Shev Jones Welcome to Local Selection! Follow us! Instagram: @LocalSelectionPodcast Twitter: @LocalSelection Shevrin Jones, candidate for Florida state senate in district 35 Twitter: @ShevrinJones Instagram: @shevrinjones (editor's note: Shev was a candida…

Local Democracy is where civil rights, your rights, either get defended... or they get destroyed. But turnout for local elections is terrible! Most people have no idea what a city council member, or a county supervisor, or a state senator even does - let alone the name of the person who represents them. But these small offices have huge power! Righ…