Thank You, Howard!

Written by: Linda Mastellone on Nov 7, 2007 1:42 PM EST

Last night, I won a seat on the Flemington Borough Council, flipping it to a Democratic majority for the first time in I don't know how long. And I have DFA to thank.

In 2004, I joined my local DFA group in Flemington, New Jersey, lead by Rosi Efthim, a leader who knows how to inspire the talent all around her. Initially, I wanted to work on getting John Kerry elected. Our DFA group was the only game in town if you wanted to actually DO something. The national Kerry campaign had no organization in NJ. In fact, we almost lost it to Bush. But our group of about 20 committed activists worked to keep New Jersey Blue. We worked on the state and local races, too, Some victories, some losses, but we learned of our power. In 2006, this power almost put Linda Stender in the House of Representatives! And it will in 2008!

Rosi's partner, Joey Novick, at the time a councilman, asked me to consider running for council when a seat came up. For three years I said not now. But, after a stunning special election victory for Democratic Councilman Mark Legato this February, in a room full of supporters, I told Joey that I would run with him this year. Everyone cheered. I felt like I just jumped off a cliff.

My DFA friends stood with me. Walked with me. Sweated with me. Wrote me checks. New Jersey For Democracy endorsed me. It always amazed me when five or ten people from all around the region--not just Hunterdon County, but Somerset and Middlesex, too--would show up on a lovely Saturday afternoon to knock on doors for Joey and me.

And it paid off. People-Powered Politics is not just a slogan. In Flemington, we live it every day. So, yesterday I won. But the real victors are Howard Dean's ideas and the 50-State Strategy. As we say in Flemington, Woo-Hoo!!

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