Body-slamming fails to swing Montana special election

Activists transformed Rob Quist from a long-shot candidate to a legitimate challenger in Montana, but in the end not even an assault charge could stop Republican Greg Gianforte from winning the state’s special-election.

As you may have heard, Gianforte attacked Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs in Bozeman, Montana on Wednesday night. Democrats were hopeful the unprovoked “body-slam” would turn voters away from Gianforte, but he won 50% of the vote to Quists 44% in Thursday’s election.

Quist was endorsed by Bernie Sanders and his election campaign was propelled by progressive activists, who made calls and fundraised on his behalf. But in the end it wasn’t enough to stop Gianforte, a businessman and major donor to Montana’s creationist Dinosaur and Fossil museum.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Greg Gianforte. Photograph: Janie Osborne/Getty Images

‘A thunderbolt of resistance’

The resistance movement had better luck in New Hampshire and New York this week, when two Democratic women won long-time Republican state legislature seats on Tuesday night.

In New Hampshire Edie DesMarais became the first Democrat ever elected to represent her New Hampshire house seat, Vox reported. In New York, Christine Pellegrino won the 9th assembly district – which voted overwhelmingly for Donald Trump in November – with 58% of the vote.

“This is a thunderbolt of resistance,” Pellegrino, who was a Bernie Sanders delegate at the Democratic National Convention, told Newsday. “This is for all the supporters and voters who understand a strong progressive agenda is the way forward in New York.”

Pellegrino’s campaign was aided by hundreds of progressive volunteers and, according to the New York Times, “may embolden Democrats in New York to put more money and resources in races across the board, or possibly to encourage neophytes to run”.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest This is actually a lightning bolt, but you get the idea. Photograph: Jason Weingart/Barcroft Images

Fight for $15 team up with anti-Trumpers to target McDonalds



Thousands of people marched in Chicago on Tuesday night ahead of McDonalds’ annual shareholders’ meeting, branding the company “the Donald Trump of corporations” as they sought to pressure the Trump administration to increase the federal minimum wage.

The Fight for $15 campaign aims to more than double that wage from the current $7.25 minimum.

Chicago alderman Carlos Ramirez Rosa told the crowd that taxpayers are forced to pick up the slack for McDonald’s low wages – as its workers often rely on food stamps and other services to supplement their income.

“Every time McDonald’s fails to provide health care and child care, who do they turn to?” he asked. “You! McDonald’s, it’s time for you to pay your fair share.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Ronald McTrump: a protester in Chicago this week. Photograph: Frank Polich/Reuters

New Jersey congressman who “outed” activist faces progressive challenger

Rodney Frelinghuysen, the Republican congressman who wrote to an activist’s employer to identify her as a “ringleader” of protests against him, has his first 2018 Democratic challenger.

Jack Gebbia, a former member of the US Army National Guard who the Daily Record reported would work “with Congress on a single-payer [healthcare] system”, announced his campaign on Tuesday.

Activists have been holding weekly “Fridays with Frelinghuysen” demonstrations outside the congressman’s office for months. Frelinghuysen, who has not held an in-person town hall in four years, voted in favor of the Republican healthcare bill that the Congressional Budget Office predicts would see 23m people lose medical coverage over 10 years.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Gebbia’s campaign page is on Facebook. Photograph: Facebook

What we’re reading

• “Will the Republican Health Care Debacle Pave the Way for ‘Medicare for All?” asks Robert Borosage over at Common Dreams. Borosage says the American Health Care Act’s unpopularity – combined with polling that shows 60% of Americans think the government should be responsible for ensuring healthcare for all – presents Democrats with a rare opportunity to pursue a single payer system.

Photo of the week

Thousands of people attended a “Trump not welcome” protest in Brussels this week. Also of interest: the pope looking less than thrilled at meeting the US president, hand-crushing-karma and Trump shoving his way to the front of a group of foreign leaders. Happy long weekend!

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Protests in Brussels on Wednesday. The guy on the right is the prime minister, Charles Michel. Photograph: Eric Feferberg/AFP/Getty Images

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