FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: September 2, 2025
Contact: press@runforsomething.net
Run For Something Candidate Sign Ups Since November Surpass Trump’s Entire First Term
Candidate sign-ups since the 2024 election outpace the entire total from Trump’s first term, signaling a surge in progressive momentum and infrastructure.
NEW YORK, NY — Less than a year after the 2024 presidential election, Run for Something (RFS) surpassed a major milestone: More people have signed up to run for office in the past ten months than did during the entirety of Trump’s first four years in office. This surge underscores both the urgency of this moment and the growing appetite among young people to lead as our country grapples with Trump and the GOP’s disastrous policies.
From 2017 to 2020—during Trump’s first term—approximately 67,000 people signed up to explore a run for office. In the past 10 months, 67,000 prospective candidates have signed up, bringing the organization’s total candidate pipeline to over 230,000 — a scale that cements RFS as the backbone of the progressive candidate support infrastructure.
“Young people“This milestone proves what we’ve always believed: The best way to protect democracy and build progressive power is by investing early and locally,” said Amanda Litman, Run for Something founder and president. “We are proud to be the launchpad for the next generation of leaders — not just during moments of crisis, but for the long-term.”
Since the 2024 presidential election, more than 65,000 people have raised their hands with interest in running for office. Most recently, over 10,000 young people signed up to explore a run in the two weeks following Zohran Mamdani’s groundbreaking primary win in New York City. By broadening its endorsement criteria, RFS is positioning itself to harness emerging leaders who are ready to bring their lived experiences to the table and fight for their communities.
This explosive growth has been powered in large part by strategic partnerships that expanded RFS’s reach and deepened its impact. Earlier this year, RFS partnered with Senator Bernie Sanders to launch a groundbreaking training and mentorship program for aspiring candidates. The effort began with a virtual call that drew over 1,300 young people — the largest recruitment event in RFS history. Most recently, RFS joined forces with MoveOn to engage its base of young, progressive members and invite them to consider running for office. These prospective candidates are now entering the RFS pipeline for support, mentorship, and training.
Since its founding in 2017, Run for Something has helped elect nearly 1,500 young progressives to local office, including school boards, city councils, and state legislatures. In 2025 alone, RFS has endorsed 219 candidates–60 of whom have won their races so far this cycle – fueling a rapidly growing bench of young and bold leaders.
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Run for Something (RFS) recruits and supports young progressive candidates for down-ballot offices. Since its founding, RFS has helped elect nearly 1,500 candidates across the country, including 18 candidates in red-to-blue seats in the 2024 election cycle. Today, RFS has the largest database of any other Democratic organization, with over 67,000 people reaching out since November with interest in running for office.