CHICAGO, Ill. — All week long, the Wisconsin delegate breakfast welcomed a who’s who of prominent Democrats, and Wednesday was no different, with Senators Tammy Baldwin, Elizabeth Warren, and Raphael Warnock stopping by.
Landiran Kern Jr. says the experience this week is one he’ll never forget.
“This opportunity is one that you cannot pass on, and it is such a monumental event in history. I'm so excited to be here and to be able to one day tell people that I was a part of this,” said Kern Jr.
Kern Jr. is one of the youngest members of the delegation, having just turned 18.
He says he has been active in Fond du Lac, organizing events and doing his best to encourage other young voters in his community.
“I hope that, you know, me going out and voting and being a delegate at such a young age gets a lot more kids interested, and hopefully, maybe they'll even come out and try to run as a delegate themselves,” said Kern Jr.
Debra Dassow says being a Democrat in Port Washington came with its own set of challenges.
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“When I first started trying to get people involved in Ozaukee County, we literally would have 10 people at a meeting in the basement of the Cedarburg City Hall,” said Dassow.
For years, Dassow says she would have to drive into Milwaukee to pick up Democratic candidate yard signs.
“When Bill Clinton was running, the state party wasn't even interested in giving us any because they thought it was a waste of their resources,” said Dassow.
From then on, she says she got to work with one mission in mind.
“We wanted to give people permission to be progressive so that they didn't feel like they were the only one, and that’s really, really changed,” said Dassow.
Now, as chair of the Ozaukee County Democrats, Dassow says she is ready to ensure this momentum doesn’t slow down any time soon.
“This is a week-long pep rally, but if you don't do the work when you leave, you just wear the cheese hat, you just do the cheering and the clapping, and you walk out and do nothing, then this is a waste of one's time,” said Dassow.
Both delegates say they plan to reach out to as many neighbors as possible by door-knocking and canvassing from now until Election Day.
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