Cross posted at Daily Kos, go Rec if you can!

This Friday we have to come up with almost $8,000 to get our ballot statement to every voter in the 33rd district of California.  This is the best way to get Gary’s message to the voters.

Last Thursday we had our Campaign Kick off party, it was a blast and Gary enjoyed playing a bit of music and meeting different Republicans and Democrats in our district.  It was a good time and we had about sixty people come, a great turn out with the short amount of time we had to get it together.

Gary is the one playing the keyboards!  

A very generous co-worker of Gary’s allowed us to use their amazing home for our kick off party.  

Gary’s Thank you to those who attended the kick off!  I’ve been asked in the past why he doesn’t post.  Gary is just not a blogger at heart but he answers every single email he gets and he’s been knocking on doors every weekend.  It’s been a great experience!

Thanks for a Great Kickoff!

Dear Friends,

I want to thank you for turning out last night to help celebrate the

beginning of a new direction in Orange County politics. And for those

of you who sent your regrets, I want to thank you for donating to our

campaign.

I want to let you know that you represent an extraordinary segment of

citizens who are paying close attention to how our Country is being

run and want to directly participate in vetting those of us who offer

up our leadership.

I’ve learned a great deal from talking to voters last night and over

the last four months of campaigning. The most consistent message I

hear is a growing sentiment among voters in both parties who are fed

up with how little our current lawmakers seem to accomplish while in

office. Therefore, it falls on all of us to be the catalyst for the

great change we seek.

Rather than rehearse ideological differences, I argue for restoring

balance. Because districts are drawn by incumbent lawmakers, most

legislative seats are considered ‘safe.’ Very few lawmakers run

competitive races after the primary. This means that their ideas are

not tested beyond their own party’s factions.

Political party takes precedence over the people in such a system.

While in Sacramento, lawmakers from ‘safe’ seats have very little

incentive to compromise, to find balance. Because I am running in a

district that has a longstanding ‘safe’ seat, my ideas are

consistently tested across party lines. This is fair. This is what

each candidate who runs in a partisan race should have to do.

We should not stand for a one party system. We should demand that, in

spite of party alliance, politicians must be accountable for their

ideas before they take office.

As you can imagine, this is a massive undertaking and far beyond the

reach of one person. But, together we can restore the much needed

transparency and accountability from our lawmakers. This starts with

letting people know that there is a choice to make in November.

A win for me in November would mandate that you would get a political

voice that is accountable to voters because you would have succeeded

in taking away a ‘safe’ seat. Long after I’m out of office, the seat

would remain competitive and our little party last night would serve

as a catalyst of remarkable change in Orange County, we would have

changed the political process for nearly the entire county with the

33rd Senate District.

In our district, there are close to one million voters who need to

know that you, the influential members of your communities, are

supporting change. As you know, all politics are local. So, our

grassroots effort will begin with talking to our neighbors. I am

asking that over the next three months each of you introduce me to

your neighbors and open your homes as Scott and Georgia did so

graciously last night.

These neighborhood gatherings will be focused on your neighbors

expressing what they want from their lawmakers in a small setting. You

provide the living room and neighbors; I will bring the coffee,

refreshments, and message.

At our website, www.garypritchard08.com I want to gather a list of

supporters who endorse our campaign. With your permission, I want to

add your name to this list.

Beyond this request, we need the 800,000 or so voters who missed last

night’s party to know that this race represents a cause we believe in.

We have a very expensive ballot statement to pay for that’s due next

Friday, August 8th. The ballot Statement will cost between $7,000 and

$8,000. The following link is our Act Blue Account where you can help

make change happen.

http://www.actblue.com/page/pr…

If successful, we will have accomplished what many say is not

possible, we will have refocused politics back to the people. We will

have ignited an era of leadership that steers clear of the pitfalls of

party politics in Orange County. Our children will become the

benefactors of our decision to unite. If we are serious about change

then we must be willing to first change ourselves.

I need your help, please don’t hesitate to contact me with

suggestions, comments, and of course criticisms.

Sincerely,

Gary Pritchard

Democratic Nominee for State Senate 33rd District

Please make donation by mail to:

Gary Pritchard for State Senate

10 Santa Clara

Aliso Viejo, CA 92656

Our walk piece!!!!  I designed it and Gary wrote the bullet points.  It needs more work, yes.  But this will probably be at least one half of our walk piece.  Just a way for you to learn more about Gary.

So, what do we need?  We need you to donate to our campaign to help pay for this ballot statement.  I know some checks are on the way and I’ve been asking everyone I know (Thanks to someone who gave me a check for $100 today!)

I’ve just not been able to think much about the National race except for wanting to Register more Democrats!  This is my political passion right now, everyone who meets Gary is impressed with his knowledge and agrees they will vote for him, Republican and Democrat alike.  I believe in this man, I know he could do something for everyone in our district and I want to get his message to every voter.