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Ep. 28: Junior Ezeonu & The Primary Upset That's Changing Texas Democrats
82 Plays10 days ago
Junior Ezeonu just pulled off one of the most compelling primary upsets in recent Texas Democratic politics — defeating a 16-year incumbent in a safe blue seat, severely outspent, on grassroots power alone. Now he's headed to the Texas State House representing Texas House District 101, and he's got a roadmap for flipping the legislature by 2030.
Kate and Alex sit down with the Grand Prairie city council member turned state rep-elect to talk housing affordability, the 2030 redistricting fight, why East Texas could change everything, and what Democrats keep getting wrong about their own message.
In this episode:
- How Junior beat incumbent Chris Turner in the Democratic primary with $100K vs. a vastly bigger war chest — and what that means for the "money wins" conventional wisdom
- His two-part housing affordability plan: banning private equity from buying single-family homes and a state-subsidized mortgage buy-down program for first-time buyers
- Why the average age of a first-time homebuyer is now 40 years old (up from 31 just two decades ago) and what to do about it
- The corporate PAC pledge: Junior hasn't taken any and won't
- Why East Texas is the sleeper opportunity that could flip the entire state — and the Stacey Abrams-style investment it would take
- The 2026 → 2028 → 2030 roadmap to a Democratic State House majority
- James Talarico, Black voter outreach, and why persuasion beats turnout-only thinking
- Why Texas is a working-class state, not a conservative one
- VIA Grand Prairie: 13,000 rides/month, $3 a ride, and why Junior is now a transit evangelist in the legislature
Follow Junior Ezeonu:
Instagram, Twitter/X, TikTok: @CallMeJRE
Facebook/YouTube: Junior Ezeonu | Conversations with Junior Ezeonu podcast
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Transcript
Introduction to 'Mission Texas' and Hosts
00:00:00
Speaker
Howdy. This is Mission Texas. A political podcast about winning Texas by 2032 or else we may lose the White House for a generation. I'm one of your hosts, Alex Clark.
00:00:13
Speaker
And I am Kate Rumsey. Other podcasts may focus on the day-to-day the next election. But we are keeping the eyes of Texas on the bigger prize. What happens after the next census?
00:00:27
Speaker
Welcome back to Mission Texas, where we're talking to people who are going to shape the state and figure out how we're actually going to win
Guest Junior Izanu: Background and Political Journey
00:00:34
Speaker
it. Today's guest is Junior Izanu, a rising political leader out of Grand Prairie who just pulled off a major primary upset against a longtime incumbent.
00:00:43
Speaker
We were just looking this up before the podcast started. Severely outspent. um He is part of a new generation of candidates thinking differently about how Democrats here in Texas are going to compete and win.
00:00:55
Speaker
We're going to get into a story, what his campaign was doing differently and what he thinks is going to take to flip the legislature. And I know everybody wants to talk about the presidential race and they love the statewide. But let's get into talking about the legislature.
00:01:08
Speaker
We got to start at the beginning. Junior, welcome. Tell us, how did you decide to run for this race? How did you get involved in politics in general? Alexander and Kate, thank you so much for the opportunity to join y'all today. it's truly an honor and a privilege. You know, I decided to get into politics really in high school.
00:01:26
Speaker
During that 2016 presidential election, Bernie Sanders inspired me. you know, I just loved his authenticity, the way that he looked at the issues and he cared about regular working people. And that resonated with me. You know, you don't have to agree with a politician on every single policy, but I really loved his fighting spirit and the issues that he brought to the table that, you know, were extreme back in 2016, but are now in mainstream. 2026, when you look at a $15 minimum wage, you look at Medicare for all issues like free college tuition for students at public schools, things that really matter to people now.
Challenges and Strategies for Democrats in Texas
00:02:00
Speaker
So I ran for city council when I was a 21 year old going on 22 during my last semester at UT Arlington, defeated a 12 year incumbent to get on the city council, served as an at large council member for five years and decided to run for state rep following that 2024 election when Donald Trump won again. And I said, you know, the Democratic Party needs change. We need change. What we're doing isn't working anymore. May have worked back in 2008, 2012, but for somebody like Donald Trump to win twice,
00:02:27
Speaker
And with all the baggage that comes with Donald Trump and all the insanity as well, telling me that a lot of voters, especially working with voters, and working families, are looking at our party and saying that we're not doing enough and we're not delivering like we need to.
00:02:40
Speaker
And I want it to be that change that I wanted to see. I didn't want to sit on the sidelines. i wanted to get in the game. Thank you. Well, thank you for running, especially as a 21 and 22 year old. I'm wondering, like do you have any reflections on that race when you're running for city council versus this one? Like, did you take with you some nuts and bolts of campaigning or you're like, man, I can't believe I did that and won?
00:03:03
Speaker
You know, that that election was the toughest one. My first election running for city council, that was the toughest race I've ever run because I didn't have a base. Nobody knew. No one knew me, you know. And um I was a young, scrappy ah college student running against someone that was part of the establishment. And during that race, I i experienced firsthand a lot of racism, both in front of me with voters coming and cussing me out and telling me that a black man should not be running. And, you know, stuff that I dealt with in mailers, stuff that were, you know, digital ads that would run against me. But it made me tough. It made me tough. It got me prepared for this moment. And the things that I took from that race that I did in this race is just the pure grassroots campaigning, canvassing, knocking on doors, reaching people directly, but keeping it local and keeping it focused on improving the lives of people on a day to day basis. And voters, you know, voters, regardless of ideological stripes, resonate with that.
00:03:54
Speaker
we talk When you talk about issues like housing, talk about issues like raising wages, um you talk about education, fully funding our public schools is important to everyone, regardless of ideology and party. So that helped me in this race. And I'm just so excited to to serve in the upcoming legislative session.
00:04:12
Speaker
I'm so glad you brought up housing affordability is one of the issues I think is just top of mind, especially for for young voters.
Affordable Housing and Economic Issues
00:04:19
Speaker
To see the median age of first time homebuyers continuing to to just climb. How do you see your role within you kind of think about delegations of representatives going down to the legislature?
00:04:31
Speaker
And at least within the young Democrats, I know there's a little bit of some complaining about how they do on housing issues, actually. How do you see your your election, your role as a new progressive voice to support efforts to actually make housing more affordable? and how are you going to do that?
00:04:48
Speaker
It's really good question. And for me, being a younger candidate and now no you know an elected official, I dealt with it when I was trying to buy my first home. um The high interest rates as well as coupled with the high market value. Oh, or you know that's what they call it, market value for for these prices. They're ballooned and they're extreme. You bought a house.
00:05:09
Speaker
i bought a house two years ago. Congratulations. You bought a house younger younger than me because For the record, this everyone is 27, right? Yeah, okay I was I was in my 30s before I could afford my first home. So good. Good on you. But i mean, that's that's normal, right? But as I was talking to voters in this election and I really hit this home in conversations with voters, the average age for first time homebuyer 2025 and years old.
00:05:35
Speaker
Compared to 20 years ago when he was 31, the average age, the mean, the mean age is 40 years old now, which means something, something that were we're not doing something right. But we have two issues. We have an issue on the front of people just being able to afford apartments, so for to afford 700 square foot apartment.
00:05:54
Speaker
It's ranging in into the DFW area about $1,500 month for rent. And let's say you get that apartment. How can you save up enough money to buy a single family home, to get enough money for a down payment, to have enough money to pay for that monthly mortgage? So for me, when I get into the legislature, I think I'm going to be able to find some bipartisan support on one of the major ideas that I have when it comes to making homeownership affordable.
00:06:17
Speaker
which is banning private equity and the large corporations for buying single family homes. We are seeing across the country for the first time a big push for this from both Democrats and Republicans, because people have children regardless of political persuasion. And they're seeing that their kids are being priced out of homeownership because you have these large corporations come and buy up all these single family homes, and turn them into rental properties, or they just try to flip them.
00:06:41
Speaker
continuing to increase the prices for these homes. Coupled with the high interest rates, it's almost, it's near impossible for anybody to break into home ownership. So that's an issue that's very important to me. The second one, the second idea that I have is the state can create a subsidized mortgage program where they buy down the interest rate for first time home buyers that qualify.
00:07:02
Speaker
So you you know you have to have a decent credit score and everything and make under, let's say under $150,000 a year. But for the first 10 or first 15 years of of you living in that home, you
Campaign Dynamics and Personal Engagement
00:07:13
Speaker
have a subsidized mortgage.
00:07:15
Speaker
So you can just get accustomed to being a homeowner. be able to afford it. but People don't just talk about it the mortgage, the the principal interest is one part, the property tax is another part and the insurance costs, which is an issue that we have to tackle in Texas so we don't turn into Florida or California. The homeowner insurance issue is going to kill us, maybe not today or tomorrow, but in the next five to six years, especially with the climate crisis that we're facing.
00:07:37
Speaker
So for me, trying to make sure we get that that subsidized mortgage program, that interest rate buy down program through the state will help a lot of first time home buyers buy their home for the first Talking my language, I'm i'm a lawyer ah for tenants and homeowners and i specialize in insurance disputes.
00:07:54
Speaker
So one of the things we see a lot are these kinds of people who just want to make profit at all costs and they're not good landlords or they're doing shoddy work on homes. They're buying them up and they're they're leasing them out and there's mold and there's other issues. And I think there's going to be maybe an unintended benefit when it comes to that issue as well. If we can get people to actually own their own homes, they're going to do the things to take care of their families. that These landlords and these people who are just rent-seeking, profit-hungry people are cutting corners on. like you see like they'll so Instead of sending out like a qualified licensed remediator, they'll send out a handyman.
00:08:37
Speaker
And they'll like paint over ah a boldy wall or they'll spray bleach on a vent or something and think that's good enough. So I'm i'm glad you're going to tackle that. I wonder your experience, though, with some of the lobbying and like packs that typically get involved in these races. I mentioned to you before we started recording that I ran in 2024. And I remember I met with the Realtors Pack. I met with the, you know, whatever lobbies. And so I wonder...
00:09:03
Speaker
What do you think their role plays in a lot of these races that has prohibited us from being able to tackle those affordability issues? You know, um the lobby's strong.
00:09:14
Speaker
The lobby has a lot of power. They have a lot of power. And y'all may be, well, it y'all might be the first podcast that I've said this on, but um I didn't take any corporate PAC money in my race for state rep. And I've made a pledge after I got elected that I'm not taking any corporate PAC money um throughout my time serving as a state legislator.
00:09:32
Speaker
um As crazy as it sounds, as radical as it sounds, um just for me, that's been an ideological stance that I've held for years. So you come back from that Bernie Sanders progressive perspective, yeah that that's how I got into politics. So I'm not taking any money from them. But I do think the realtors, their PAC and the different groups do have a sway in the state legislature, with some members more than likely. But I think there's areas that we can find compromise because I i talked to realtors in the DFW area and they see the issue that we have when it comes to ah these corporations and these private equity firms buying up single family homes There's a lot of good people out here that are realtors. They want to sell to the families. They want to sell to individuals. They don't want to sell sell to corporations or multinational corporations that are just trying to throw people into homes and jack up the price every year to where it's iss unaffordable for a working class or a middle class person. So I think there's there's areas for compromise and for solutions. I'm not sure where it is yet because I haven't served yet, but I'm i'm sure we'll find something and hopefully find it in this upcoming session.
00:10:32
Speaker
Well, then can we go back to the the nuts and bolts of your campaign? I mean, I just want to step into your shoes a little bit. And you're a sitting city council member. You're taking on an incumbent, Chris Turner, who I know has served for a pretty long time and has strong name recognition. And I compare it only to what I know, which is when I ran i was telling you before that I also ran in a seat that is considered safely blue or leans blue. I also ran against somebody who was known in the community who she's a friend now, Cassandra. So shout out to her. But I was very unknown. I mean, unlike maybe you had a bit more name recognition, but I found that it was difficult to get people interested in my race in the primary because like hard to raise money because people are focused on flipping races. And it was also hard to get people to want to volunteer in the community because they didn't know who I was, who I were. And then like also to go up against somebody who was perceived to be supported by the incumbent. So I'm wondering, did you have the same issues? And how did you... Clearly, you surmounted it more than me. You went up against an incumbent.
00:11:38
Speaker
Yeah, I had a lot of the same issues. um You know, it it was difficult. It was very difficult because Chris, you know, he's a good man. And he was there. He had served for 16 years. Well, 15 years at the time, 16 years. lot of time this term is up in ah in January.
00:11:52
Speaker
And a lot of people that had supported me in the past supported him. So there's a lot of folks that said, you know, Junior, I love you, but I can't give you any money this time when you're running for state rep. I had a friend of mine who told me when I told him I was running against Chris, he was like, Junior, I love you, but I'm going to double my donation to Chris so he beats you. And I told him, I said, well, brother, I'll be back here next year coming to collect whatever you gave him. Double that. Exactly. Double that.
00:12:18
Speaker
So it was very difficult to to fundraise. I only raised about $100,000 because, you know, a lot of people just wanted to stay out and some would just support the incumbent because they've known him longer than they've known me.
00:12:29
Speaker
I had only been elected for about five years. I barely got any endorsements from individuals, elected officials, as well as organizations. I got like maybe three or four organization endorsements and maybe 10 elected officials that endorsed me. So it was very challenging. But the advantage that I had that kate you did not have was that I had served as a city council member that gave me some name ID.
00:12:52
Speaker
within my district, especially on the Grand Prairie side. But also folks don't realize this. I grew up in South Arlington before moved to Grand Prairie. So all of my schooling from pre-K to high school was done in Arlington ISD, which is in my district. And then I went to UTA, which was in my district as well. So I did have relationships with a lot of people that weren't, you know, they're not traditionally primary voters, but they're going to come about come out to vote at primary because I'm on the ballot yeah because I reach out to them.
00:13:20
Speaker
So that helped me significantly just being deeply rooted in the community. I'll i'll give you one more example or two examples. I worked at Kroger. Kroger was my very first job. i was a cart pusher grocery bagger when I was 17 years old.
00:13:31
Speaker
Several of my colleagues from when I was working at Kroger came out to vote with me and would take pictures and say, dude, I haven't seen you in 10 years, but I remember you at Kroger. It was so cool. So cool.
00:13:41
Speaker
And then um ah one last lady that I met at the polls, she said, you don't remember me, but we worked together at JCPenney. I worked at JCPenney when I was in college as a cashier. She was like, dude, I'm so proud of you. I'm so proud of you. She said, you look exactly the same. just you didn't I had longer hair. I had more hair. i didn't really have this back in my college days. The beard. Yeah, I didn't have that back then. So it was just so cool.
00:14:03
Speaker
um And that that that was a major advantage, just being truly grounded in my community and being someone that was literally raised there from the age of two to now. So that helped me out significantly.
00:14:14
Speaker
Well, you're joining the legislature. You're going to be a new voice. You're going to provide a a lot of energy and provide what you've described as a spark before, as I first learned about you on the 817 pod. But even for those of the of us who really have been excited to watch you run and and are glad that you won, one of the things I continue to hear a little bit of tension, a little bit of worry about is that Chris Turner,
00:14:39
Speaker
for whatever faults you might have with him, that he was kind of a go-to source for members on fundraising to help them with that, that he was kind of almost like a labor guru to help them have a better chance of success in getting certain pieces of labor-related legislation through the house.
00:14:58
Speaker
what What do you see as your your job to kind of allay those concerns that, you know, you're going to be able now that you're the the elected, you'll be able to provide fundraising support to help flip the legislature. You'll be able to help shepherd labor legislation as a champion to the House.
00:15:18
Speaker
Definitely. it's It's a great question. um I think at the very beginning, it's going to you know be a challenge when it comes to being able to help fundraise significantly for other members. um That's something I'm just going to have to grow into and get better at. And I think as you know as I have more time ah theyre underneath me while serving in the state house, I'll build relationships, not just with labor, but other organizations ah to help our our progressive champions win these competitive districts, win these competitive races. So I'm going to prioritize that Having a um you know a safer, bluer seat gives you the latitude the flexibility to go help other people get elected. And that's what i spend time doing, even without just fundraising, helping people create their field plans, helping them get volunteers and canvassers and staff to help them win these elections. um And I'm doing that right now the several races in Tarrant County, especially.
00:16:07
Speaker
um So that's one aspect. The other aspect when it comes to helping members with labor legislation, when I get down there, we're going work on that. We will. We will definitely work on that. I'm someone that's always been a core supporter of labor while serving as a city council member.
00:16:21
Speaker
there I mean, labor built this country. And we're here where we are. We are where we are right now because of labor, because of their their valiant efforts and fights during the 18th, during the 19th and 20th centuries. That's how we got to where we are now. So labor has my backing. And once I get down there, I'm sure I'll be able to help shepherd some of the bills through and support the work that they do.
00:16:43
Speaker
Well, you figured out a way to raise the minimum wage for city employees, right? Thank you. So I'm going to brag about that for a little bit. You're welcome. I did my homework. okay I appreciate it. love it yeah um it was like my It was my second year on council. And we were discussing this with the city manager at the time and some of my council members. And I said, guys,
00:17:01
Speaker
You know, know it sounds crazy to y'all because this young progressive black kid is on this council now, but um we need to get this minimum wage up for all city employees. for So for part-time city employees, $15 an hour, for full-time city employees, $17.82 an hour.
00:17:16
Speaker
That was crucial to me because when it comes to the part-time city employees, these are your college students, your high school students, your younger people that are working their first job at the rec center, at the library, or at the golf club, or wherever. And you want them to have enough money that they're able to pay for their books or to save up for their tuition. You don't have tuition free ec college yet in Texas for public schools, but for several things to put them in a position where they will do well. My first job as a 17 year old, I was making $7.55 an hour. As a to year old was making an hour.
00:17:52
Speaker
So for me, I know what I went through just to pay for my books at UTA and take out loans for my so my education. I wanted to help them have a better opportunity to make it in this new economy too, especially with inflation going up. People need to earn more um to match the inflation.
00:18:08
Speaker
I remember what that was like. I was a tutor at Kumon. did retail selling clothes at PacSun. I remember Pacific Sun. I remember PacSun. I used to go there. I was a server at Olive Garden and Cracker Barrel. That's even less than $7.25. You get that server minimum wage.
00:18:28
Speaker
I was a cashier as well in college and I became a manager. And you know why? Because I got another dollar on top of my minimum wage. I also got a free Starbucks or Subway. And, you know, it's a little humbling when you're putting on a hairnet and serving...
00:18:42
Speaker
sandwiches to your classmates. But you know what, we all got degrees and the same places and look where I got you junior but i wanted to tell a little bit of a story I was in a campaign school. It's the LBJ Women's Campaign School.
00:18:55
Speaker
wanted do a project and one of the projects was to run for city council and guess where? Grand Prairie. Grand Prairie. Yeah. So I did all this research on... We all had to.
00:19:06
Speaker
and speaking of your city employees, there's not... We had look up all these rules and like get all sorts of like campaign finance information. And we ended up all calling the city employees, like the clerk or whatever. Yeah.
00:19:18
Speaker
After a while, these people from your your city government were like, are you from that campaign school? like Y'all keep calling. And I felt so bad for those employees in Grandbury because they had to put up with us. But it was a great foundation to learn how to run for office. So shout out to the LBJ Women's Campaign School. I'd love to talk to them. um But i wanted to follow up on ah ah one of the pieces that you mentioned earlier about endorsements and also fundraising, because I think there's a perception when you're running for office, speaking of a campaign school, when you're learning about this is that, oh, yeah, you got to get all these important endorsements. You got to focus on your that time and you got to do call time and you got to run. You're only perceived as a really good a candidate if you are a good fundraiser. Right. like And I'm wondering, what are your thoughts now having been so outspent and also not having those key endorsements?
00:20:07
Speaker
So endorsements to me, just being 100% transparent, are negligible at best. They they don't matter like that. Unless Barack Obama's endorsing you or...
00:20:18
Speaker
yeah someone of like significant magnitude and clout, it doesn't matter as much. It doesn't, because voters half the time don't know these people and voters don't really care.
00:20:29
Speaker
But the endorsements matter if you're running, let's say that you're running a really bad campaign and voters don't, let's say I was running a really bad campaign and voters didn't, yeah I didn't reach out to them, I didn't knock on their doors, I didn't have conversations with them, they would vote for the candidate with more endorsements because that candidate seemed more reputable and they didn't know the other guy.
00:20:46
Speaker
But when you run a good campaign, those endorsements don't matter because people don't generally care unless they don't they don't have any information. The endorsements matter more in environments where there's low there's low information. Same thing with money.
00:20:57
Speaker
Money is important. You need to raise money to to run competent campaigns. It's important. Like, for example, what helped me in my race was a couple of things. Mr. Turner.
00:21:08
Speaker
You know, was a good man, but he spent a lot of his money just more on TV and mail. And I knew I didn't have money like that to spend on TV and mail. So I spent a lot of my time, energy and my money on just doorto- door to door canvassing, having real conversations with voters. But it also helped that it was just him and I running against each other and not a you know a race of 10 or 15 people. I bring this up because I have some people that are calling me that are running for mayor in Dallas and you know having real conversations ah with them about the difficulties and the importance of money in that race just because there's going to be 20 candidates running. And the way you stick out and stand out to voters is by having your name out there.
00:21:46
Speaker
So money is important, but money is not the end all be all.
Long-term Political Strategies for Texas
00:21:50
Speaker
There's a lot of candidates that have been spent. I'll spend 10 to one like myself. Candidates that have been outspent 20 to one that have won their races, um even when not having the money that their ah opponent had. AOC, when she ran against Crowley, she was outspent.
00:22:04
Speaker
He spent like 1.2 million. She spent like 90,000. and she'd meet him. So it's it's possible, but money is important, but it's not the end all be all, especially in a race where it's just you and that incumbent or you and one other candidate.
00:22:18
Speaker
It's much more manageable. yeah I think that's right. And ah we're seeing like the attention economy, whether it's AOC or Zoran, there's a kind of a new kind of modern playbook that I think has to be written. And the old one, maybe not shredded, but it's got to be updated. It's got to be refreshed. And I think...
00:22:38
Speaker
What better time to do that than in the run up to 2030? I mentioned you were on the 817 pod and I was immediately drawn to you because you were talking about basically the thesis of this whole podcast, which is 2030 is coming, whether we like it or not.
00:22:51
Speaker
And we're going to get four or five new congressional seats. And that means we're going to get four or five new electoral votes. And we don't figure out Texas. We're going to be in a world of hurt. ah for a long time.
00:23:02
Speaker
And so you have a diagnosis problem on the on that podcast. And I was like, ah man, he's singing our song. That's great. ah Good to see someone who like gets it.
00:23:12
Speaker
So when you think about this, how do you see and we'll we'll let you get into like the last word at the end about how we actually gonna flip it. But when when you see this problem, how do you diagnose Like what's the issue for us getting the legislature back? Because we can do a lot of things and have a better hand in negotiating a better map with the governor or the attorney general or our different statewide offices. And everybody wants to focus on those. But like the legislature would be even better. If we can have the legislature, we can be the ones making the decisions on the maps.
00:23:43
Speaker
So what is the issue now with with winning those seats? How do you see it? So the Republicans did a really good job in cracking and packing us in the 2021 redistricting session.
00:23:58
Speaker
They redrew the lines back in 2021. they made they They made it very difficult for us to... um when you know crucial elections. And that's why, you know, going back in history, back in 2020, it was really crucial for us to win those pick up those seats in 2020.
00:24:15
Speaker
Like we we really screwed ourselves by not winning those. It was like 10 races that were decided by less than three points that we really needed in 2020, really needed desperately. The Republicans have made us pay as a result. But we're having advantages now where a lot of people of color, progressive people that have moved from outside of the state into Texas are moving into all of these different communities that were once considered in districts that were once considered plus 10s, R plus 9s, R plus 8s. I believe in this 2026 election, lot of those plus 8s are going to be plus 1s, D plus 2s, maybe R plus 1s, R plus 2s. They're going be very competitive. Because you have a lot of people that have moved and you're having movement amongst voters that have called themselves independents, that lean Republican that are just disgusted with the party and are looking at Trump and saying, you promise no more wars. You promise lower gas prices. You promise affordable groceries.
00:25:10
Speaker
You're doing the opposite. So I think that's going to be to our advantage. We still will have a challenge in flipping the state house, for example, because we need to pick up 14 seats. So my goal is pick up eight, pick up seven or eight seats this year, hopefully, and then retain those seats in 2028, try to pick up another two.
00:25:30
Speaker
And by 2030, pick up the additional two. So we have a 76 to 74 majority in the state house. It's so crucial. That's the cycle of matters, right? 2030 20, 30 is the ball game. like Folks don't realize if we screw it in 2030, it screws our generation for the next 20 or 30 years. yeah it It really just does. 2030 is so crucial. It is fundamentally crucial for the not just Texas, but for this nation as a whole.
00:25:57
Speaker
Like you said, in 2031, we're going to do the redistricting again. And Texas is going to pick up at least four seats, maybe five. Where are those seats coming from? California, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York, and one other blue so blue state.
00:26:13
Speaker
It's all coming from blue states. which means that it we have to be able to draw somewhat fair maps. And you have no ah you know and no ability to negotiate with the Republicans if you don't got the state house, if you don't have the state senate, or you don't have the governorship. You got to have at least one of those three or or the lieutenant governor. You have to have one of those four.
00:26:32
Speaker
So that's why for me, I really believe, guys, we if we and you know we'll come, we'll talk about how we can get there later on in the conversation that you stated. But if we do what we need to do, run really good candidates that focus on these kitchen table issues and then deliver on these kitchen table issues, communicate how we're delivering. That's the other thing the Democrats don't do well. Communicate what you're doing. Get those quick wins, those small victories, but also create the environment for those longer wins, those longer victories that you can talk about. every cycle that you show people what we're doing every cycle, how we're improving their lives every cycle. So when they go and vote, they don't even hesitate about voting Democrat. Like we're voting for them because they take care of us. And that's how the Democratic Party once was.
00:27:11
Speaker
People thought of the Democratic Party as the public works party, the party that delivers on the basic infrastructure needs, the basic ah social welfare programs that help us on a day to day basis. And that's what we have to return to if we want to flip the state by 2030.
00:27:26
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, one of the frustrations I think we have is that so many people are focused on this race in 2026 and the Senate race. and And yet we are trying to focus not only on that, but also on the long term in 2030. And I think more people are coming around to the idea that we needed to be flipping our state ledge.
00:27:44
Speaker
And we on our podcast really try to focus on down ballot races and state house races like yours. We joked that in we tried to have every person who's flipped a seat from 2018 because we had like 12 people. in that year.
00:27:57
Speaker
But I mean, this is another Trump midterm. And so it seems like we have a very good shot at gaining a lot of new seats. But in 2030, I I'm just thinking long term, like best case scenario, we win the presidency and 2028. And then it'll be our midterm. And then, you know, you fear that because that's when typically the pendulum swings the other way. And so I'm wondering, like, how do you think that? And I i do know, having listened to you on other podcasts that you buy trade, you're a consultant, you do a lot of data. And so, you know, I'm wondering what are your thoughts on that um as we head into those races? And also, how do we get people to focus on this? Because even...
00:28:35
Speaker
donors, activists, people that we all know, i feel like just are not thinking about this in the long term and are still just so captivated by the Senate race. Short term investors. Yeah. too longterm plays yeah Exactly, exactly. um You know, something that you just said does keep me up at night and worries me.
00:28:54
Speaker
And it's the fact that in 2028, you know, by the grace of God, we're going to win the presidency. But then in 2030, the year that we really need is going to screw it. And that's why the 2024 election was really do or die for the future of the country, because if we won, if Kamala Harris won in 2024 and then 2028, who knows what happens?
00:29:14
Speaker
we we We could at least go and bounce back to 2030, but we have to take back the presidency in 2028. And unfortunately, it it will make it difficult in 2030. It's not impossible, though, but it will make it difficult. And the reason i say it's not impossible is Biden was president in 2022 when we had a really good cycle. In Texas, we didn't have a good cycle, but nationally, we had a good cycle in 2022, and it was post-Roe V and Overturn. So that that that played a part, too.
00:29:38
Speaker
And just like some historically terrible candidates that they yeah they had chosen. Yes, they they had chosen Trump's sycophants. Marshall Walker and Dr. Oz. Oh, that's right. Carrie Lake. Carrie Lake. Oh, my There's like three senators right there. They they should have probably had that cycle.
00:29:58
Speaker
They should have flipped. But, you know, shout out to them for picking their extremes and their extreme, just their crazies. Thank you, Republicans, for picking your crazies and allowing us to win those races. So to your question about how we can have people shift their focus to worry about the long term ramifications of Texas and the importance of us winning in 2030 is difficult because so many people are captivated by this 2026 Senate race, which hopefully we we win.
00:30:25
Speaker
It's hard to shift their their brains to 2030. And what really is going to annoy me is this. We do really well in 2026. We pick up eight or nine seats in the state house. And then in 2028, all the donors pour their money into Texas in 2028. Well, they should have poured their money to Texas in 2026 to help us flip 10, 12, or 14 seats.
00:30:46
Speaker
like this is the This is the moment in the year where we can pick up those seats and then worry about retainments in 2028. instead of picking up only eight this year and then trying to hold seats in 2028 and pick up a couple seats.
00:30:59
Speaker
This is the year we should be going all in on the state ledge. yeah Yeah. Well, I think winning anything statewide this year is is going to be so important. Not only...
00:31:11
Speaker
Internally for our own morale, I think Texas Democrats are some of the most pessimistic Democrats in the entire country. There's really no explanation I've been able to come around to is more compelling for why we have not been able to elect somebody statewide for longer than any other state party in the country. Other than we just convince ourselves that it's not going to happen before we've even really tried.
00:31:32
Speaker
So I think it'd be important for morale. But I also think from an external perspective, we're just talking about like donors from other states pouring money in. Like, I think it'll be a proof point. Like it can happen. And I think once we unlock the the fear, the pessimism and just be like, okay, game on, this can happen.
00:31:52
Speaker
i think you're going to see people invest earlier. make better choices, ah campaign decisions that flows from that. Like i get so sad every time I think about how half of the money Beto O'Rourke raised in 2018 was like in the last month of the race.
00:32:08
Speaker
Yeah. And I think the reason why it is, and I understand is because that's when we finally got a poll showing that Beto could win. Be like, oh, it's possible. And they started to act like we could win.
Building Momentum: Voter Engagement and Investment
00:32:19
Speaker
Finally. We have a poll right now out there that shows that James Tallarico can beat Ken Paxton or John Cornyn. So we have that proof point way earlier than Beto had it because of ah rock star primary between, and know, Jasmine Crockett and James. He's much better known in the electorate overall than Beto was at this point in the race.
00:32:46
Speaker
At this point in the race, even activists had not heard of him really, unless you were from El Paso. Like he was like this guy who would do like Facebook live streams while he was, you know, on his truck and all that. But yeah,
00:32:57
Speaker
You know, he he became more famous much further into the race than we are right now. And so I think that the attention piece is good for us right now. And i'm um Kate and I are actually going to be hosting a fundraiser for our Railroad Commission candidate tomorrow, John Rosenthal, because I think there are lots of other statewide races that I think are sneaky opportunities.
00:33:23
Speaker
Like I think 100%. I think yeah James could lose at the same time. Rosenthal could win. Yeah, he's having a hard time fundraising because nobody cares. I mean, think about that. But I mean, just Alex, I don't know if you want to finish a thought on that, but I have something to piggyback on, which is like in 2028, we will not have a big statewide race. We will not have a Senate. We will not have Governor, Lieutenant Governor AG. And so I'm wondering, is that the opportunity to convince all of our donors and all volunteers who need to channel their en energy somewhere to really invest in our ledge and our ledge races and helping
00:33:59
Speaker
help you turn out those, you know, flip those seats across the the state. I mean, and just think it's such a great opportunity for us to say, stop funneling your money maybe to the national party or to the presidential race, but really reinvest here and all that, you know, how many millions of dollars Tallarico has raised, like let's channel that into our local races here to really flip the legislature. Well, and require whoever our nominee is in 28 to run an honest to God campaign in Texas. In Texas, yeah. Yes.
00:34:28
Speaker
Yes. Not a campaign in name only. Exactly. No, yeah i think y'all are very correct about that. Um, 2028 does present that opportunity where you don't have anybody else on the ballot. Focus on the ledge, focus on those down ballot races. Let's, let's, let's, let's win the majority in the state house by 2028. Let's do it. Let that be the goal instead of just 2030. and think now let's do it. Yeah. Yeah. Like Babe Ruth with a cigar. Exactly. I can focus on the Texas Senate in 2030, right?
00:34:58
Speaker
And then try to pick up whatever we can in the Texas Senate. Try to get as close as close as we can to 15. You know, i was looking at the numbers. ah Let's say Taylor, you know, Taylor keeps his seat this year. Taylor Ramet, who won the special election.
00:35:11
Speaker
I believe he'll be able to keep up. I met him the other day. Taylor's a sharp guy, sharp guy, solid guy. love Taylor. He keeps his seat. That'll put us at 12. That keeps us at 12. And then there's one seat. I forgot who won it. A Republican's in one of our seats. That's really a D plus four or five down there in the Valley. We can win that seat back by 2028. I really think we can.
00:35:30
Speaker
We just got to pick up three more seats to take the majority in the state house. I mean, in state Senate, we just need three more seats. anymore So, I mean, it's possible. If we do our job, it's literally there's nothing impossible.
00:35:43
Speaker
At one point, we Texas had a progressive ah Democratic senator back in the 60s. Wasn't that Ralph Yarborough? Yarborough, yeah. Yeah. This is back in the 60s.
00:35:54
Speaker
Guys, it's possible. But we have to believe in it. Put in the work. Put in the work. We certainly can't decide that the race is lost before it starts. actually I mean, people like to say like, oh, if only we had Ann Richards, like Ann Richards wasn't supposed to win that race.
00:36:10
Speaker
He won that race because her opponent went on TV and made a rape joke. Yep. This is a little bit of education for our listeners. You should go look it up. This guy, at Clayton Williams, he goes on TV and says, you know, it's like the rain. If it's going to happen, don't you lay back and enjoy it? And that was the kind of thing that meant you didn't get elected.
00:36:28
Speaker
Now it means you're the president. I don't know. Yeah. Yeah. How far we've gone in the wrong direction. Yeah. Well, before we go into our last segments, I wanted to ask you a little bit about reflections from the primary. i know you were connected to the Jasmine Crockett campaign and now the James Tallarico. was reading a Reuters article came out today about James Tallarico and how he needs to work with black voters and black communities. And I'm wondering, like, what are your...
00:36:55
Speaker
What would be your recommendations on what you think that his campaign should be doing? And in that article, he was saying, we're going to Houston, we're going to Dallas, we're going to Sand Branch, I believe is the name of the city that doesn't have water, you know, and they're talking to black church communities.
00:37:09
Speaker
And you're wondering, like, what is, how can they speak to the issues of those communities? Where can he go? What should he be doing? Yeah, so I met James about three weeks after, three weeks ago, um like a week and a half after the primary. You know, i told James, I said, James, I supported Jasmine in the primary. um I'm a big Jasmine Crockett supporter. And and um she's helped me since I first ran for city council and I've known her. i said, James, you have my 100% support. We got to win this and you're a great candidate. But James is a very good candidate.
00:37:38
Speaker
I was very excited because we had two great candidates running for Senate. Yeah, two great candidates. That never happens. And primaries are a good thing. People need to understand primaries are a good thing. They make the party better. They make your candidate stronger. So James is going to be a strong general election candidate because he had a strong he had a tough he had a difficult primary.
00:37:55
Speaker
I think when it comes to black voters, Democrats, Democrats as a whole, not just James Tallarico. This is what was trying to communicate to people um' in a few interviews. Democrats cannot look at black voters as a turnout audience or turnout demographic.
00:38:11
Speaker
Black voters are a persuasion persuasion demographic, just as Hispanic voters are, white voters, Asian voters. You need to tell us, tell them what you're going to do for us.
00:38:23
Speaker
I'll tell you this at the polls, I have black folks come up to me. ah It'll be me and Chris, Chris standing by each other at the polling sites. They will say, so what are you gonna do for us? They'll ask me, you have to earn every single vote. You don't deserve anybody's vote.
00:38:36
Speaker
You have to earn every single vote. And that's what James Tallarico will have to do. it And I believe he's already started the work meeting with the black pastors, the ministers. And the thing about the sand branch um water issue is James was meeting with them during the primary. He met with them before after before the primary was over. So he he was doing the work before that. So I commend him for that. But.
00:38:58
Speaker
Just continue to travel the state, meet with the folks everywhere. Go to East Texas. East Texas, if we just, it's so crazy. If East Texas, which is the the area that most Black folks in Texas when it comes to a region as a percentage, it's about 20% Black. if just yeah If we just moved East Texas 10% in a Democratic corner, we win the state.
00:39:21
Speaker
Hmm. You're the first person to tell us that. That is amazing to hear. i remember seeing the kind of the the map of the the primary turnout between Tallarico and Crockett and and seeing like there was something happening in East Texas. And I think people forget To her credit, one of the things Jasmine did early in her career, she was like a Bowie County Democratic chair.
00:39:45
Speaker
like Yeah, and a public defender, I think, in that area, right? so Guys, I'm going to tell you all something. that I've told a few people, and um I can't do this yet because don't have the money for it. But if I had the money and the time, I would do what Stacey Abrams did in Georgia, here in Texas, but I would focus in East Texas.
00:40:04
Speaker
Literally East Texas has the opportunity, like if we just invested year round two million dollars in turnout operations, but not even focus on the partisan races, focus on the local city council school board races. And this is why East Texas voters, the black voters East Texas generally don't vote because they don't feel like nothing changes when they vote.
00:40:28
Speaker
said that my life is gonna be you know what it is whether I vote or don't vote. So they've given up on voting. But when you go out there and you help them elect their first mayor, first African-American mayor of a African-American majority city or elect their city council member, that they now, a friend that lives down the street from them, that they can call whenever they have an issue dealing with their utility or dealing with an infrastructure problem or with their local park or recreation center, they now see, wait,
00:40:57
Speaker
my vote matters. And it only took 200 of us to vote. Because it's really, pointing yeah. So people now become habitual voters that no longer just vote you know for the local races. They're going to go, when you come and knock on their door ask them to vote for a Democrat for Congress or a Democrat for the State House, they will come out and vote now.
00:41:16
Speaker
Literally, East Texas could change our state, but it needs the right amount of investment, right amount of attention, right amount of infrastructure just to be built to help us flip the state.
Balancing Progressive Values with Broader Appeal
00:41:28
Speaker
We could flip Texas along with just East Texas. That's a long term play. That's a long term play. We're going to get you money, Junior. You're next fundraiser here on Mission Texas. So we're going to it. Yeah. And to be clear, Stacey Abrams, I think, is on our list of like dream podcast guests because she's exactly the kind of person we want to talk to about how you actually move the needle.
00:41:49
Speaker
Yeah. So I love that. Thank you for sharing that. Let me ask you a a slightly different question. We talked about I think it was before we started the recording. It was like the kinds of people we reach out to to grow the tent.
00:42:00
Speaker
And I was saying that I think you can do both because you had mentioned third way types. And my my friend who who works for the third way, actually, was just saying how how excited he is that you're going to do work on housing.
00:42:13
Speaker
And so I think there's a way for you can do do both. But how do you think about like balancing like the appeal to the more progressive populist base with also kind of people who we know are part of the electorate that might be persuadable?
00:42:28
Speaker
Again, we're not talking about like going after mo Republicans. If you voted for Donald Trump, you know, three times in a row, probably not our our target audience, but like the people who self-identify as independent.
00:42:39
Speaker
And like you said, are are now disgusted. How do we balance those things? Is there a way to do both? Definitely. um I think that was an advantage that I had on the city council because when i ran, a lot of people didn't support me because they said he's, he's you know, he's a radical, he's too liberal. And then they saw me when I governed, they said, wait,
00:42:57
Speaker
He's a reasonable guy. i ended up winning over a lot. You know, it's a nonpartisan race, but i ended up winning over a lot of people that were Republicans or just moderates. Even had a lady, an older African-American lady, walk up to me one day. She said, Junior, why do you call yourself a progressive?
00:43:11
Speaker
Whenever i I talk to you, you're so normal and so rational. said, progressive politics is rational and normal. It's just, you know, just the caricature that you see online yeah confuses you. So I think the way that we do that,
00:43:25
Speaker
is we need to be culturally and the way that we speak to people culturally normie. I just be a normal, regular person, but talk about these progressive issues in a way that it connects with people on a personal day day to day way. Right. So when I talk about housing, I don't use language that is, you know, political jargon or political nomenclature that regular people just want to understand.
00:43:50
Speaker
Talk about you need need to be able to afford your home. You have a child that grew up in this neighborhood that is now 25, that's looking to get you know, has their first, got ah got a good job, but just can't afford to buy a house in the neighborhood or in the city that they grew up in. That's a problem.
00:44:05
Speaker
That's not right. And no matter who you are, when you hear that, you're like, yeah, I want my kids to be able if my kid want to live in Grand Prairie or live in Arlington. they have They should be able to live there and i have to look to live in Waxahachie, which is not even as affordable by as much as it was before. But like they don't have to look 30 minutes outward to find a place to live.
00:44:23
Speaker
When you speak like that, talk about wages, tell people, hey, inflation is up. Inflation is, last time the minimum wage was raised in Texas was 09 when the federal government did it. And um and inflation is up 51%.
00:44:34
Speaker
and you talk to folks and say, I believe you deserve a pay increase to keep up with inflation. yeah but Like, you know, that doesn't sound too radical. That's true. I do deserve a wage adjustment to keep up with inflation.
00:44:48
Speaker
So I think, you know, just be culturally normal and culturally normie in how we talk about these issues, but maintain your progressive perspective. And when you do that, I think you're bridging the gap because sometimes on our side, you know, as a lefty, we say things that just sound crazy and how we deliver it.
00:45:05
Speaker
But the policy is good. The policy, tell you this, the policy is centrist when you think about everybody in the country. Everyone supports higher wages. We all support affordable homeownership and affordable housing. We all want our kids to go to good public schools. Everybody does. Republicans, Democrats, it doesn't matter.
00:45:24
Speaker
Everyone does. How are we telling these stories and connecting the dots for regular people? And when you work on that and you stay very disciplined and focused, you would like for me when I ran against Chris, Chris Turner, I focus on the kitchen table issues.
00:45:37
Speaker
ah that's That's all I focused on. Drilled home, the kitchen table issues, because that's what matters to regular people. That's what that's what they care about. They don't care about all the big political party talk about this, that they don't care about that.
00:45:49
Speaker
How are you going to make sure how are you going to help me afford my house with these high interest rates? how are you gonna help me afford to put my kid through through college? Just the basics.
00:46:01
Speaker
I agree with like how how you communicate matters. Yeah, we as lawyers know that, you know, I'm yeah, we are in front of juries, right? Yeah, yeah like unhoused versus homeless. There is ah some truth to that.
00:46:13
Speaker
Yeah, talking talking like a normal person. Yeah, like Zoran is like relentless and just showing that government works. Like I'm going to fill those potholes. I will help you get the ice off the streets and we will be relentless and that government does work for you and it can help you in your everyday life. Y'all seen those DNC memes?
00:46:31
Speaker
Which one? About Zoran where he's like holes filled...
00:46:38
Speaker
There's like really suggested on campus. I've seen that. I've seen that. I've seen that. yeah yeah i see Thanks for bringing that up, Alex. It's for the content. The PG podcast.
00:46:50
Speaker
Someone at the DNC knows exactly what they're doing. And it is funny. It is funny. No, no. But that right there, that's the engagement, though, for the attention economy that connects with people like regular people that are, you know, they don't really care about politics like that. They see that. They're like what what are you talking about? it At least makes you so yeah a little slower. Like, wait a minute. know Exactly. so It's effective. It is suggestive, but it it is effective.
00:47:16
Speaker
what What else is effective, I think, is that Republicans are really good at getting their good news out. They are good at spreading their gospel. They have their story. They're all singing from the same street of music. And I think Democrats, we're a little shy. We're not as evangelical.
00:47:30
Speaker
We don't spread our good news. So something we like to do here on the podcast is get into the habit of that. Just flex that muscle. So what is something from your life, Junior? Something...
00:47:41
Speaker
personally or professionally, other than the fact that you just won this primary. It is good news. So good that you just got to share it Alexander, I'm
Innovative Local Solutions and Infrastructure
00:47:49
Speaker
glad that you bring this up um because Democrats suck to their own horn.
00:47:54
Speaker
Yeah. like politics You have to toot your own horn. you too while While I was serving as a city council member, I don't care if I tied my shoes today. You're going to take a picture. I'm going to post it on social media and say, this is what I did. Because if you don't tell voters what you're doing, they don't think you're doing anything.
00:48:09
Speaker
And this tool right here is the greatest tool to allow us to get our message out without having to go to the media. You just you tell your story. You you sell it to people, let them know what you're So for me, my good news is this.
00:48:23
Speaker
While serving as a city council member, there was something that that we did that I was very proud of. Grand Prairie is not part of DART, so we don't have any major public transportation system.
00:48:35
Speaker
So in my second year ah as a council member, we created something called VIA. via Grand Prairie, which is which is a ride share system that allowed our residents to get a around town for $3 a ride anywhere in the city. But also, if you're a college student, it'll take you to nearby universities like UTA, Dallas Baptist University, TCC Southeast Campus, Mountain View Campus within Dallas College and for $3 a ride.
00:48:58
Speaker
Via averages about 13,000 rides every month, 16-minute wait time, and has helped bridge the gap for so many working people and working families. 70% of the people that ride via you know in the surveys tell us, if via didn't exist, I would struggle to get to school or get to work. Because the average income for via rider is $45,000 year.
00:49:21
Speaker
So for me now, you know, that's my good news. Now moving to the state ledge, I am a public, I'm a transit enthusiast because I know what's possible when our communities are connected and people are able to move around at and at an affordable rate, but also in an efficient manner.
00:49:39
Speaker
What it does for climate change, reducing our greenhouse gas emissions, there's so much that can be done with good transit, good transportation policy. Please tell me you're going to give me this bullet train between the Texas Triangle that I've been promised. Yes, please, yeah. I want to go to San Antonio for dinner and be back in bed. Do you know how amazing that sounds?
00:49:58
Speaker
It sounds incredible. I have very good friends in San Antonio and Austin and in Houston and I want to go go see them and i want to be back to lay my head down on my own bed. If we if when we do that, that will transform our state to a different level. I mean, look at the East Coast. Well, you can you can take the Amtrak from D.C. to New York, take you about three hours and then you come like you can do a day trip. I've done a day trip from D.C. to New York and then back to D.C. in one day.
00:50:25
Speaker
And you can work on the train. You got your Wi-Fi. you got a table. you got food. It's comfortable. I mean, it's great. Texas, we're going to get there. We're to get there because they've been talking about this bullet train since I was like, i think like eight or nine years, listen just the mid 2000s. It's time that we get there and we have to, you know, just.
00:50:43
Speaker
Other countries have nice things. I want nice things. I want the bullet train. And we can do it. We can do it We can do it as possible. Government can make good things happen sometimes. yeah When we do our job, when we do our job, we can make good things happen. And and that right there is super important to me.
00:51:01
Speaker
Transportation is sexy. We're going make it that way. yeah It is. Alex, what's your good news? My good news. I am ah the vice president of the board for a preschool here in Dallas called the Children's Center.
00:51:14
Speaker
And tonight is our yearly fundraiser called Pino, which stands for parents in need of a timeout. So it is 90s themed this year. don't know if you can see here on the screen, but I've got my like shirt and my blazer and a gold chain.
00:51:31
Speaker
So I've got my 90s attire on um and I'm very excited to to relax with my my fellow parents. think when I think was in the ninety s it was like flannel. yeah I would have worn flannel, but I don't know that I have mine anymore.
00:51:47
Speaker
ah used to have this great ah flannel pearl snap shirt that I would wear whenever I was like pretending to be the brawny man. from The paper towels. I got you. There you go. Well, you're okay.
00:51:59
Speaker
Yeah, I just had some friends in town. So shout out to them from Michigan. And they say that they so they listen to the podcast because they're obviously my friends and i have to force them to do that. But shout out to
Call to Action: Flipping Texas by 2030
00:52:08
Speaker
them. And I was like, how do what am I going to show off with Texas and this area and this proud state that I'm a part of? And so we went out to Fort Worth and I love the zoo out there.
00:52:19
Speaker
So incredible zoo. And then we went to the stockyards and it's just so fun to show off your state and your area. But it's like, you know, what are you, it's not New York, it's not l LA. Like, what are you going to show but like a 10 year old? So we were able to have a lot of fun, um, and show them around. So that was ah that was a really great time for me. And speaking of good news, you know, just saying like spreading our gospel of like what's, what we can provide here in this state and how awesome it is. So in our community, so I'm really excited about showing them that.
00:52:47
Speaker
Um, All right. Well, before we get into our last segment, I wanted to put a little bit of a plugin for our Patreon. If you would like to support us as independent media and help defray the costs of our podcast, you can become a member for just a few dollars a month, or you can support us by giving us a five-star review wherever you get your podcasts and share our social media.
00:53:05
Speaker
Okay, well, now we have what we alluded to this. This is our last segment. We're going to give it up to you, Junior. It's your last word. How are we actually going to flip the state? We've talked a little bit about it over the course of the podcast. But what are your what's your thesis on how we flip the state, the legislature, are statewides?
00:53:22
Speaker
Think of this as like the last stand at the Alamo. What are you going to do? Rally the troops. Rally those troops. Get us going. Thank you again for having me. it's Truly an honor to be here. I think it started with my race. When I got on that podcast with the 817 pod, I talked about being the spark for our state. It's going to piss off a lot of people. And there are people that piss that we're doing what we're doing, but we have to. If we're going move Texas forward, if we're going move the state forward, if we're going to our nation forward, we need change. And change is coming to the Democratic Party across the board, from federal, state to local. If we're going to flip Texas by 2030, we're going to take the state house and hopefully the state Senate as well, and win a gu win a governor's race, at least by 2030, we're going to need progressive populist people that focus on economic kitchen table issues, raising wages, making home ownership affordable again, fully funding our public schools, making college tuition free.
00:54:16
Speaker
Hammer home these issues, hammer home these issues. Stay disciplined, stay focused. And I'm going what I'm going to do. I'm very lucky and fortunate to have a safe blue district. I'm going to turn out my district, get them to the polls, make sure that they vote in these general elections, make sure that they vote in these primary elections so we can win these races.
00:54:34
Speaker
Make sure that they're voting on the local races, too. I'm going to spend my money, my time and my energy to do that in my district. I'm going to travel to state wherever the party needs me to do that, too. because i know what's possible but guys we have to be disciplined we know the contents and the character of our state but texas is not a conservative state it's a working class state it's a blue-collar state where people work really hard and they deserve a government that works just as hard for them and i believe we will flip this state but we have to stay focused on these issues these issues that matter to regular people
00:55:08
Speaker
and I'm telling you now, by 2030, we will win the state house. We will have a Democratic speaker of the house by 2031. Yes. Y'all heard me now. What's today's date? of whatever April 10th. April 10th. Yeah.
00:55:22
Speaker
It's going to happen. It's going to happen. hes on him Is that what's happening? yeah I didn't say that. I didn't say that. Don't get me in trouble. I didn't say that. But it's going to happen.
00:55:33
Speaker
It's going to happen. Amazing. I love that you were saying that you need to turn out blue voters because that helps in the statewide. And I think that some safe blue seats ah don't get as much love because people aren't focused on those. And it's hard for them to fundraise and turn out people and get canvassers because everyone's kind of focusing on the flips.
00:55:53
Speaker
But we really... Every blue vote counts. And so if you can turn out a high concentration of blue voters in a safe blue district, then that helps in every statewide. It helps the other races that are around you, a Senate seat. So I love that you're saying that. um Well, Junior, how can we support you? We mentioned we're going to, I vow, I will help you fundraise for this East Texas project. How else can we support you and follow you?
00:56:16
Speaker
I appreciate that. Well, you can check me out on Instagram, ah Twitter. um What else? TikTok at CallMeJRE. If you want to follow me on Facebook, just type in Junior Izanu. Izanu is spelled E-Z-E-O-N-U. I'm on YouTube. My podcast is on my Fair Play Politics page on YouTube, but you can just type type in Conversation with Junior Izanu. You'll find my podcast. Yeah, that's how you can support me. And I'm very blessed to potentially be serving as a state representative next January. I'm State Representative for District 101, I'm so excited to deliver on good policy. And I just thank y'all again for having me. Thank you so much. And I also will become a Patreon subscriber.
00:56:55
Speaker
So y'all make sure y'all become a subscriber too and support and good independent media because we need to support our independent media. Let's do that. I know we're going to share your content and hopefully get on your podcast so we can have a cross collaboration and support each other because you're independent media as well. So, well, thank you, Junior. We had a blast in this conversation. i'm going to say see y'all next week and God bless Texas.
00:57:17
Speaker
You can follow us on all socials at Mission Texas Podcast. Email us at missiontexaspodcast at gmail.com. This episode is edited by Juan Jose Flores.
00:57:29
Speaker
Our music bumper is by Adam Pickerel, and our cover art is by Tino Sohn.