This week we need you to: 

1. Google Project 2025 to understand the grim vision for Trump’s second term.

2. Check out our merch store!

June 18th Runoff Recap

As most of you are aware, Georgia had its state legislature runoff races on Tuesday. Here are the winners of the Democratic primaries:

State House

• District 96 — Arlene Beckles

• District 145 — Tangie Herring

State Senate

• District 38 — Rashuan Kemp

• District 55 — Randal Mangham

• District 34 — Kenya Wicks

The 2030 Project was happy to support Democratic candidate Juawn Jackson for HD 145, who unfortunately lost his race. We were proud of him and his campaign’s ability to raise awareness for state legislators who advocate for a bold, progressive vision for our state. While the results are not what we hoped for, we thank Juawn for stepping up to run, and we look forward to continue working with him and other emerging young leaders in the state of Georgia. 

Now that the November ballot is set, over the next four months, we are excited to share with you all of the courageous Democrats who are running for office. We hope you will join us in supporting their campaigns and getting out the vote! 

The 2030 Project Candidates Show Solidarity for Gun Violence Awareness

National Gun Violence Awareness Day was on June 7. Gun violence and mass shootings are a uniquely American issue and reality. After 2020, shootings increased rapidly compared with earlier trends in previous years. From 2013 to 2019, the number of mass shootings per year in the US never rose above 414. However, from 2020 to 2023, the number of mass shootings per year has never been lower than 610. In 2023 alone, there were 656 mass shootings. The United States is an international outlier in terms of gun violence and gun culture. 

Georgia has some of the weakest gun laws in the country. In 2017, the General Assembly passed a law requiring colleges and universities to allow guns on campus and repealed it in 2022 to pass permitless carry legislation. Furthermore, the state's Gun Law Strength Score is rated 5/100, with a gun violence rate of 19.7 (per 100,000 residents) compared to the 14.2 national average. 

At the 2030 Project we aim to recognize the many grievances and issues our Republican-majority state legislature ignores, endorsing candidates valuing community safety over partisan ideals. These candidates, Michelle Kang (HD 99) and Ashwin Ramaswami (SD 48), showed their understanding of the efforts we need to take to decrease gun violence by wearing orange. Both Michelle and Ashwin are representative of what the state of Georgia deserves: candidates who recognize gun violence and want to protect Georgians, not guns, a top priority for the GOP.

Far-Right SCOTUS Continues to Stress the Importance of State Legislatures

As we approach the end of the US Supreme Court’s term, the decisions that affect the entire country are in the minds of many. With the relatively new 6-3 conservative majority on the Court, armed with the recent Dobbs decision overturning Roe v Wade, it is expected that this Court moves the law further to the extremes. Last week, we got several opinions from the Court, and they appear to follow the schema the Court has used for years, which is to save the less popular and more controversial decisions until the end of the term.

In FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, SCOTUS unanimously upheld the availability of mifepristone, a medication used for abortions, in a massive victory for abortion rights. However, there is a caveat to this decision in that the ruling was on procedural grounds as the Court ruled the plaintiffs didn’t have standing, meaning the Court could revisit the legality of mifepristone in the future. This isn’t hypothetical either; many anti-choice groups are attempting to sue again, but this time with more pertinent plaintiffs.

In Garland v. Cargill, a case about the legality of the ATF’s bump stock ban, the conservative supermajority ruled that the bump stock ban, which the Trump administration introduced after the horrific Sandy Hook shooting, was illegal. This ruling makes no logical sense, as the law in question bans machine guns and bump stocks to convert manual firearms into automatic weapons. As Justice Sonia Sotomayor quipped in her dissent, “When I see a bird that walks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, I call that bird a duck.” The conservative majority on the Court has shown it doesn’t care about the law or the people but instead bows down to groups like the NRA to further its sinister agenda. This ruling heightens the stakes of the election in November, as only with a Democratic government can we restore the ban on bump stocks to keep us and our children safe. 

Looking forward, there are still many issues yet to be decided by SCOTUS, including whether former Presidents have immunity (Trump immunity case), whether January 6th rioters can be prosecuted under federal law, whether emergency rooms can provide life-saving care in states with abortion bans, and whether the 2nd amendment protects the rights of those with domestic violence restraining orders to own firearms. With all the power that this far-right Court wields, now more than ever, it is paramount that we elect as many Democrats to the Georgia State Legislature. By electing more Democrats, we can preserve democracy and fight for the safety and prosperity of all Georgians.

GOP Response to Trump Conviction

Two weeks ago, former President Donald Trump was convicted of 34 felonies. We had hoped that leadership within the Georgia State Legislature would reconsider their previous full-throated endorsement of Trump as the next president of the United States.

Since then, not only has this leadership failed to retract their endorsement of this convicted felon, some have made a point to attack the jury representing everyday Americans and our legal system itself. Below is a graphic representing top Republican leadership in Georgia and their stance on the disgraced former president.

If you research Project 2025, you’ll understand why it is important we elect as many Democrats as possible and why it such a big deal that these seven Republican legislators continue to support Donald Trump for President.