Young candidates in Pittsburgh are sick of 'waiting their turn'

[TexasTowelie]

There is a common criticism of young politicians like U.S. Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez or Ilhan Omar: “wait your turn.” It implies candidates must gather a certain level of experience and the go-ahead from older authority figures before seeking office. More and more, that sentiment is being rejected across the county, and in Pittsburgh.

Ashley Priore is part of a new wave of young candidates who ignore that conventional wisdom. In fact, she's wanted to get into politics since she was a young child and says she's waited long enough.

Priore is 19 years old and running for a seat on the Pittsburgh Public School Board (PPS). And she is not alone. Priore is joining hundreds of other young people across the country vying for elected positions on the local, state, and national levels.

The 2018 midterm season saw an enormous spike in millennials (ages 23-39) running for, and eventually elected to, political office. Nearly 700 millennials ran as Democrats for about 6,000 state legislature positions across the country during the 2018 midterms, according to the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee.

Read more: https://www.pghcitypaper.com/pittsburgh/young-candidates-in-pittsburgh-are-sick-of-waiting-their-turn/Content?oid=14458797

[watoos]

1. I have to be careful how I say this,

I will use AOC v Crowley as an example. Joe Crowley was a good Democratic Representative. Someone ran against him in the primary. Why wouldn't the Democratic establishment want to keep Crowley in his job? He had a record as a good, loyal Democrat.

There was a complaint when AOC beat him out that voter turn out was very low. I must say that this is a strategy that is used TO KEEP THE INCUMBANT IN POWER. Joe Crowley only showed up to one of the 3 scheduled debates. He sent a Latina woman to take his place.

I understand that the power brokers in the Democratic party, both at the national and state levels, want to run candidates that will win in the general election. I am just saying that there is a fine line balancing act that they must do. If they get caught putting their thumbs on the scale for the incumbents or for their hand picked candidates that's not being a democratic organization.

I like what the DCCC did in severely restricting the use of super delegates, even the Republican party doesn't use super delegates. The leaders of the Democratic party did a super job in orchestrating our blue tsunami victory in 2018. Keep up the good work but remember the part that millennials played in that 2018 victory.

[MyOwnPeace]

2. I think you did

a great job of saying it!
Yes, we need the advice, experience, and direction from the professional politicians, but we don't need to have someone pat us on the head, tell us that they know what's best for us.
It is sad when there are more qualified candidates for one position (you know that only 1 of them can win the spot), but it is sure better than not having ANY qualified people run.