Dear Friends, Supporters, and Community Members;
Today I have some news to share regarding my campaign for Congress here in Michigan’s 8th District. Effective immediately, I have decided to officially suspend my campaign for U.S. House of Representatives.
I’ve never been someone who’s short on words and thoughts, so bear with me here. From the start, I led by sharing that I’m not a wealthy person. I’m a Millennial who graduated college in 2009 and started my professional life in the worst economy since the Great Depression. While I’ve done better financially than many of my peers my age or younger; I don’t have the level of wealth that enables me to cover my very real living expenses while campaigning, which include student loan payments, some other debt and loan payments, and other normal cost of living expenses. Unfortunately, I’ve hit my financial wall.
Candidates are allowed to pay themselves a salary from campaign funds, so they can work full-time on their candidacy. From the campaign fund, I paid myself less than $2,000 since I started fundraising in December. I have since depleted the modest savings I had in my personal savings account to cover my non-campaign related living expenses, and to continue without substantial funds raised in the immediate future would mean requiring dipping into long-term retirement investment savings which I’m not willing to do.
I felt it would be a disservice to every person who’s contributed to this campaign fund to not use those dollars on resources that would help my chances at winning. Sadly, running a congressional campaign is incredibly expensive. The cost of my donor database platform NGP alone is $1000/month. The cost of staff can range from $3000-10,000+/month. The cost of printing and direct mailers are also in the thousands to tens of thousands. The rate at which I’ve brought money into this campaign has simply been superseded by monthly operating expenses. Unfortunately, I’m at a point where it’s simply not feasible for me to continue forward without it severely impacting my personal finances and the personal finances of my campaign team. I’m not going to ask my team to risk financial instability when we’re engaged in a very asymmetric campaign against a deeply entrenched political establishment. I also am not going to continue asking individuals to contribute when I don’t believe there is a viable path forward to victory, given the political realities of this race. However, I’m keeping my ActBlue account open for a few more weeks, should you wish to help send a “thank you” to my campaign team for their time, energy, and efforts. Any additional donations that come in will be distributed among my campaign staff.
Thus, at this time, I believe the only responsible move is to bow out and move on to other projects that will continue to help communities here in the 8th district, including my home of Flint, where I will do what I can to improve the quality of life here for residents in other ways.
I want to thank anyone who volunteered on this campaign, donated, shared my content, or did anything else to help get my message out there. Your support helped me through some very stressful, uncertain, and anxiety-heavy times and I will always be grateful for all of you who were in my corner. It’s very intimidating to put yourself out there and to know I had your support means so much to me. I want you to know that despite dropping out of this race, I will remain involved in community service in other ways. I’ll continue to serve the public in different capacities and maybe down the road I might attempt to run for something again; but for now, I’m going to take a break from my career in public-policy and focus on some other projects. For the last two years, I’ve been writing a book which I hope to finish this year. I’ve also been writing more music than ever, and playing and being around live music has always made me happiest. In addition, I recently became a member of the American Federation of Musicians Local 542 and United Musicians and Allied Workers; where I also hope to support the collective advocacy goals for reform within the music and entertainment industry that continues to change at a rapid pace with technology, AI, and other challenges. I will also continue to help the Michigan Association of Conservation Districts with our collective advocacy goals as I believe the work Michigan’s CDs are doing is critical to our state’s future. In other words, I’m going to keep busy working on things I care about regardless of this concession.
I also want to thank anyone who helped boost our message that our political system must work on behalf of working and middle class people and not the extreme minority of millionaires and billionaires. This has never been about a single candidacy, but rather supporting and expanding a national grassroots movement dedicated to getting money out of politics. This campaign is a prime example of why we must achieve comprehensive campaign finance reform or many of the pressing issues we face as Americans will remain unaddressed. Elections should never be about who can raise the most money, but rather who has the best ideas, the best policies, and the most capacity to build bridges with those we disagree with so that we can address the many issues we’re experiencing as Americans. My hope was that we could show the rest of the country that by electing a progressive populist in the literal median district of the country, that these ideas are more popular and in high demand than the “middle of the road, third-way” politics that have dominated the Democratic Party since the 1990s. I believe it’s still possible, but I’m not the candidate to get us there.
I feel it’s important to use this opportunity to remind those of you reading why I decided to run in the first place. America is still healing from the dramatic impacts we experienced during the Covid-19 pandemic from 2020-Present. While many of the economic indicators are positive across the board, working and middle class people are still struggling, especially in this part of Michigan where many of our communities suffer from population loss and lack of economic opportunities.
Since launching my campaign in December, I’ve heard from countless Mid-Michigan residents about the many pressing issues facing them.
I’ve heard about the high cost of child care and how it remains one of the highest monthly bills for young parents.
I’ve heard about the high cost of elderly nursing care, which is so expensive that folks charged with caring for their aging parents or other relatives in declining health are finding that they’re losing their entire life savings with nothing to pass on to their beneficiaries.
I’ve heard about the lack of safe and affordable housing, and how many of my peers in their 20s, 30, and 40s believe they will never be able to afford their own home, while their rent keeps increasing.
I’ve heard about the struggles with the high cost of groceries that keep holding Michigan families back, further cutting down on their ability to establish emergency savings; while congress fails to break up the food system monopolies that are experiencing record high profits, distributing billions of dollars in dividends to their private shareholders, while Executives are telling families to eat cereal for dinner.
I’ve heard from my friends in the LGBTQ+ community and their fears about the rise in far-right homophobic and transphobic language, violent hate crimes, and discriminatory legislation being passed in state houses around the country; and the very real and valid anxieties they have over simply leaving the house to go about their daily lives.
I’ve heard concerns about the future we’re leaving for our children and grandchildren as our changing climate increases the rate of wildfires, the intensity and length of droughts, the frequency of extreme weather events like tornados we witnessed in February, and the challenges family farmers are experiencing at the beginning and end of grow seasons.
I’ve heard from young people who’ve all but given up on the idea of a future where they’ll have an environment where they can thrive, let alone enjoy the standard of living previous generations have experienced. These same young people view pursuing higher education as a waste, only to be saddled with decades of student loan debt, which won’t guarantee a career with sufficient compensation that will enable them to pay down said loans. Many of these younger folks told me they don’t have any hope for a future that isn’t doomed by environmental catastrophe, where raising a family and retiring one day is a viable reality. The sense of hopelessness among Gen Z and younger generations should be a wake-up call to every older American.
I’ve heard from Flint public educators about how their pay is the lowest in the region, despite having to deal with some of the worst conditions in the classroom; many of whom are so burned out that when they get home, they’re updating their resumes and applying for other jobs instead of grading papers or planning for tomorrow’s lessons. It’s worth noting that it was reported this week that Flint Community Schools and United Teachers of Flint have reached an agreement and will be moving forward, about which I am very relieved to hear!
I’ve heard concerns from Flint residents, about our community’s future, about the lack of grocery stores where residents can purchase fresh nutritious food, about environmental racism where polluters continue to dump toxic chemicals into our river or attempt to deliberately set up businesses that would pollute our air in our community, without accountability. I’ve heard about the impact our interstate system has had on predominantly black neighborhoods where our public officials continue to ignore quality of life issues such as noise pollution, safety, air quality, and other environmental concerns. I’ve heard from residents about the difficulty of getting around without a car, because our city wasn’t planned in a way where our streets are safe for those who rely on non-motorized transportation. I’ve heard from Flint residents about the continued mistrust in our water system and the anger over how the perpetrators of the water crisis will never be held criminally accountable due to the gross failure of our judicial system.
Many that I heard from around the district expressed that they believe our political system does not work on their behalf, but rather on behalf of the ultra-wealthy, billionaire class. Many expressed their frustration with the Democratic Party for failing to hold accountable the ultra wealthy who continue to control our political system that enables the highest level of wealth inequality in U.S. history, as our infrastructure crumbles, due to decades of disinvestment that the Inflation Reduction Act only scratched the surface of addressing. Many expressed to me that they don’t see a path forward as the rich get richer and the middle and working classes shrink. The sense of hopelessness among working people is palpable.
Fortunately, we can address these many issues facing Americans if we come together and reform our system so it works on our behalf and not on behalf of the ultra-wealthy. We must get money out of politics and emulate models utilized by many other strong democracies throughout the world. This can be achieved and I firmly believe that the political willpower exists in this country to see it done. I think despite our fears and anxieties as Americans, we have much to be hopeful and optimistic about our future. We cannot give in to hopelessness, we have to get active to make things better, and I hope my candidacy has helped inspire other Millennials and younger generations to get involved with our political process.
That being said, I do think there is a path forward for significant change in America, but as Democrats we have to face some hard truths. I want to use this opportunity to talk to my fellow Democrats and express my concern for the future of this party and this country. While any of the candidates in the 8th District Democratic Primary will be infinitely better than whomever will eventually be the Republican candidate in November, we must proceed with great caution, awareness, and intent. The standard position of today’s Republican party is one that openly embraces a fascist, anti-democratic ideology that demonizes immigrants, members of the LGBTQ+ community, academics, scientists/public health experts, and others who threaten their power. Today’s Republican party widely rejects that our elections are open, free, and fair. Sadly, this message is resonating with working-class Americans because they don’t believe the system is working on their behalf. Talk to any working class MAGA folks out there, and this is an extremely common sentiment. Trump is an anti-establishment candidate who appeals to the populist desire for change, unfortunately the change Trump advocates for is fundamentally autocratic and anti-democratic in nature. Trump benefits from the lack of faith in our electoral system among working class voters, and this is a very real problem for the Democratic Party. Faith in an election system is the critical cornerstone of any robust democracy, and without that faith, the legitimacy of the American democratic system will crumble. Today’s Republicans continue to embrace the “Big Lie” and are actively undermining the democratic electoral process in favor of a system of permanent autocratic rule by an extreme minority. Not long ago, Donald Trump even went so far as to say that if re-elected, he would be a dictator on day one and purge the Federal government of any official who doesn’t swear fealty to him. They’ve openly shared their plans for hijacking the Federal Government, and if you haven’t read any of the details in “Project 2025” (read it here) it should be a wake-up call to every independent, moderate, liberal, or leftist in this country. My fellow Democrats, fascism isn’t some obscure idea that Republicans are flirting with, fascism is a mainstream Republican ideology that is actively taking control of their party. Right now, the similarities between the fall of the Weimar Republic in Germany in 1933 and what we’re seeing today in American politics are deeply revealing and stark. Fascism is an insidious ideology that inevitably leads to open persecution of the “other”, violence, and genocide; and it must never be allowed to take root in America. Let’s not repeat the same mistakes of the past, we must build a Democratic Party that refuses to continue working for the ultra-wealthy ruling class and instead works on behalf of the working and middle class. It’s critical as Democrats that we must openly embrace transparency, honesty, and integrity within our own primary process. We don’t anoint people for office in this country, and if our own party embraces these practices, then we’re no better than the fascist elements within the Republican Party. Transparency and democracy aren’t just good ideas and values that we ought to embrace, they are the foundation of our party, and we must do everything we can to ensure our processes uphold these foundational principles. If we continue to utilize corrupt, unfair, backroom deals made in the dark, then we can fully expect to lose working class voters who don’t view the Democratic Party as a viable pathway to address their concerns. When people view the system as something that’s inaccessible to their influence, where their voice is weakened, where they have little to no capacity to enact change as active citizens; then as Democrats and a country… we lose. We must do everything we can to protect the public trust by continually making our own internal party processes and primaries more transparent, democratic, fair, and accessible; or I fear we will lose our liberal democracy that is so incredibly fragile.
In addition, it’s worth noting that I, and many others, have legitimate concerns that without a robust, progressive, populist platform that truly offers viable policy solutions that will help working and middle class people in this country, Democrats will lose to far-right, extremist politicians, like Paul Junge, who pedal fascist populist snake-oil in wholesale. We cannot tow the middle of the road and expect to win the hearts and minds of working class people, whom our systems have been failing for decades. In order to address today’s pressing issues, Democrats must be bold and work to change the very foundations of our systems that perpetuate inequality and suffering in this country. America is in crisis, and the status quo is untenable. We must provide a clear viable alternative to the extreme politics of the mainstream Republican Party; whose agenda is visibly one of disruption, permanent minority rule, increasing ineffective tax breaks for the wealthy that will only further re-distribute wealth away from working/middle class families, protecting monopolies that price-gouge and exploit consumers at every opportunity, de-regulation of industry that will continue to pollute our environment exacerbating the climate crisis and public health issues, and complete control over what women do with their own bodies. This is the world they’re trying to secure and we cannot let that happen. We must be bold.
To my fellow progressives and leftists; I know you’re tired, angry, frustrated, heart-broken and wary over the genocide that’s currently occurring in Gaza at the hands of the IDF using bombs and weapons manufactured in the United States, paid for with our own tax dollars. Every day I read the news and my heart continues to break for the millions of Gazans affected by Israel’s collective punishment against the Palestinian people for the reprehensible actions of Hamas terrorists. I agree that the Biden administration and Congress must call for an immediate ceasefire and end all non-conditional aid to Israel that is continually used to create untold suffering among the Palestinian people, in our name as Americans. We must do everything we can as a country to promote a two-state solution that gives the Palestinian people the right to self-determination and sovereignty. As the world’s remaining super-power, that has provided billions of dollars that support this apartheid system, we have much work to do. However, we cannot let our anger and frustration with this administration’s lack of action in preventing suffering in Gaza lead to another Trump presidency and Republican-controlled congress. We must continually advocate and apply pressure to this administration to take definitive action in stopping this injustice.
After the 2016 election, I became involved with the Genesee County Democratic Party out of my frustration as a working class person. Like many, I saw a party that wasn’t working on our behalf and the threat of MAGA-Fascism concerned me enough to work within the party to advocate for real reform that embraces politics that help working and middle class people instead of millionaires and billionaires. I encourage Progressives, Leftists, and others to channel your frustration and energy to become involved with the party. Your voices are critical in building the “big tent” and driving change both within and outside of the party. Show up at your county party meetings, join committees, drive the direction of policies, write resolutions for those bodies to consider and openly debate, engage with the Michigan Democratic Party at the state level; these are all things within our grasp that do make a difference. Unfortunately, we live in a two-party system, and the Democratic Party is the only viable option for anyone left of center on the political spectrum. We must build a broad coalition of voters in order to get money out of politics so our system works on our behalf. Abstention from participating in this system will not achieve our desired results, in fact, it will only further empower the fascist movement. It’s only when we come together that we can make the many changes we need to make in our country and I do believe that change is possible, however long it takes. This campaign was always about this principle and while it didn’t turn out how many of us had hoped, we’ll keep moving forward to build a Mid-Michigan and America where all people flourish.
Lastly, I want to comment on endorsements. At this time, I have no plans on endorsing any of the other candidates in the 8th District race, but I do firmly believe that every candidate would be an exceptional and viable option to go on in November regardless of who wins the August primary. I will do everything I can to support the eventual candidate in November. I wish you all the best of luck and thank you all for your service, dedication, and courage in running to represent our communities here in the 8th district.
Thank you everyone for taking the time to read this. Once again, I greatly appreciate your support, and look forward to working with all of you in the future.
In Solidarity,
Dan Moilanen