Last night we made history. In Iowa, we kicked off incredible momentum that will carry the groundswell of voters who want Medicare for All, Clean Water, the Green New Deal, and Free College for All into New Hampshire next week, and on to the rest of the country.

As members of Iowa CCI Action and People’s Action, we caucused for ourselves, and for our loved ones. We caucused for folks who came before us, and for the generations to follow.

We caucused for the millions of people across the country - and the globe - who are ready to radically shift our political system away from greed to one that puts people and our planet first.

We did that.  

There's a lot to critique about the Iowa caucus system - including the state Democratic Party’s slow reporting of results. And for every person we talked to who was excited to go, there were parents staying home with kids, people working second shift, or folks not able to attend due to accessibility issues. 

But we used this “all eyes on Iowa” moment to pull more people into this movement.

Early results show the people did show up in a big way - from Ottumwa, the very first precinct to vote, where fourteen out of fifteen chose Bernie Sanders, to West Liberty and other bilingual voting sites, where many first-time voters also overwhelmingly chose Sanders - our issues, and our candidate, are winning.

But the most important thing is last night, we - the people - won big. We won big on: Medicare for All, Clean Water, the Green New Deal, Free College for All. And just as importantly – doing politics differently.

 Together we lifted up a bold vision for what’s possible and what we need and deserve.

But, CCI Action members know this better than most: Iowa’s caucus night is just one step. 

Today the presidential campaigns are on to the next 'important' state. Yet our work stays the same.

If we are going to transform our political system, we need to jump right back in and keep this political revolution moving – in our communities, in our issue campaigns, at the Statehouse, and into the next election. As CCI Action member Pat Bowen says,

"There's no downtime in democracy."

But right now, we just want to say thank you. Thank you for speaking out and talking to your neighbors about the world you want to see every day of the year.

A huge thank you to the three dozen CCI Action members on our presidential leadership team, who led us through our seven-month endorsement process - from our candidate questionnaire to the People's Presidential Forum we co-hosted with People's Action on September 21, and finally to our endorsement decision.

A huge thank you to those of you who have been in the work for the long haul – your work got us to this point. For those of you who are newly engaged: thank you for your new energy and fire. And a thank you to our fellow People’s Action groups in New Hampshire and beyond who will carry the torch from here.

We don't believe in political saviors. We know that everyday people are a powerful force for justice. 

We’ve already seen what the political and economic establishment will throw at us. But we will not shy from this fight, and why we need to grow in numbers and in strength.

If we stand together, we can win a future that works for everyone in Iowa, our country, and our planet.