Individual Donors Come Out In Force For House Candidate Elias Rojas
Finance reports show strong grassroots support for the candidate's historic campaign for the Alaska State House.
Anchorage, Alaska - July 24, 2018 –-- With a strong showing from individual donors and ample cash on hand, the campaign for Alaska House candidate Elias Rojas entered the final weeks of the Democratic primary with confidence and enthusiasm.
Rojas announced his historic campaign on May 23 that he would run for Alaska House in District 20, representing Downtown Anchorage, South Addition/Inlet View, Government Hill and Fairview. At the 30-day reporting deadline yesterday, the Rojas campaign reported receiving contributions totaling $25,450, almost all of it from individual donors. The campaign said it has $10,770 cash on hand with a month left until the primary election.
“I think it says something powerful that our support hasn’t come from special interest groups or PACs,” Rojas said. “Our campaign is truly grassroots, like most of the campaigns I have been involved in. These are largely contributions that have been made by individual donors — concerned citizens who are putting their hard-earned money into this campaign because they believe in our message and support the change we’re trying to bring to Juneau. We knew this was never going to be easy but we are on track.”
Rojas faces two opponents in a contested primary, the winner of which will face off with Republican Ceezar Martin to replace Democratic Rep. Les Gara. Gara announced in May that he would not seek a ninth term. The district leans strongly Democratic; Gara was last opposed by a Republican in 2012, and in 2016, District 20 voters favored Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump by a margin of nearly 2:1.
“District 20 represents an incredibly diverse population — not just racial diversity, but diversity of income, education, religion, background, and opportunity,” Rojas said. “The person who represents our district in Juneau has to be able to represent, understand and empathize with people from all walks of life.”
Rojas, who was raised by a single mother in a California farming community, was a first-generation college student who became active in Democratic politics while attending San Diego State University. After years as a field organizer for a national LGBTQ equality organization, he moved to Anchorage in 2006 to make a home with his partner. An active community organizer since he arrived in Alaska, Rojas is a founding member and current board president of Alaskans Together for Equality, Alaska’s statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization. He has earned his MBA from Alaska Pacific University, worked in both the non-profit and for-profit sectors, and started his own business.
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