Alabama Democrats were victorious in their fight to keep Republican nominee Roy Moore, an accused child molester, out of the Senate.
The night of that special election in December 2017, Democratic Sen.-elect Doug Jones addressed his supporters in Birmingham, Alabama, and gave a shoutout to the black voters, especially black women, who DNC chairman Tom Perez said “led us to victory.”
“We can’t take that for granted. Period,” Perez said in his tweet following the victory.
During that special election, members of the Black Voters Matter Fund were on the ground developing their strategy to turn citizens into voters by connecting with local activist groups, knocking on doors, and reminding regular people of their political power.
They’ve since been touring the South, including Alabama, Georgia and Louisiana, and registering black voters.
This week, as national attention settles on Michigan for CNN’s 2020 Democratic debates, Black Voters Matter is testing that strategy in the Midwest. They’ll stop in several cities in Michigan, including Detroit and Flint, registering voters and listening to their concerns and questions for the candidates. The group is also connecting with local activist groups, including Detroit Action and Frontline Detroit, to host debate watch parties and discussions.
“There are parallels between Midwestern states, particularly Michigan and Ohio, and the South,” said LaTosha Brown, a co-founder of Black Voters Matter.