The Path to Victory in November: Anti-Corruption Democrats Are Leading the Way to Flip the House

ECU Endorsed Four Candidates Who Are Running to Unrig Washington

There’s only one way out of this mess: In November, Democrats need to flip enough seats to break Republican control of Congress. And with the right candidates and message, it can happen. Across the country, Americans are feeling the pressure of rising grocery, energy, and healthcare costs. And President Trump’s unhinged and dangerous war in Iran isn’t helping the GOP cause. Meanwhile, it’s hiding in plain sight that superrich donors got Trump and Congressional Republicans elected, and now Congress is giving out handouts to billionaires to repay them while leaving everyday people behind.

Americans are fed up with all the grift. The important thing to remember this year is that it’s not enough for Democrats to just run on how broken the system is. Everyone agrees, for different reasons. To win, Democrats must present clear plans about how they’re going to change it. Since Trump was elected again, Democratic candidates across the country have won big when they focused their campaigns on taking on big special interests and fighting for affordability.

That’s why we’re supporting a roster of anti-corruption champions across the country. Last week, ECU endorsed four candidates who committed to represent people, not special interests, by participating in our Unrig Washington campaign. Their platforms include clear reform agendas that include goals we share like banning Congressional stock trading and cracking down on dark money. And none of them take a dime of corporate PAC money.

ECU is supporting these candidates because if elected they’d be champions for anti-corruption legislation to get Big Money out of politics and steer this country back toward being a functional democracy. But the truth is, supporting candidates like these is also a way for Democrats to win more races across the country. Voters are angry, they want change, and they deserve better. And we can have better people representing us. It is possible, and we’re working on it.

I want to introduce you to some Unrig Washington candidates running for Congress. These candidates are all working to flip their districts from Red to Blue. That means they could decide who controls the House of Representatives.

Bill Hill is running to flip Alaska’s At-Large House District. The district is currently represented by Republican Nicholas Begich, who received $4.67 million in special interest spending on his behalf in the 2024 election, including $437,000 from Elon Musk’s America PAC. Begich has introduced a resolution stripping Biden-era protections from the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, voted for the Republican megabill that cut roughly $1 trillion from Medicaid and gave another $75 billion to ICE, and he has introduced legislation to protect crypto – while reportedly owning $750,000 worth of Bitcoin.

Hill is a complete contrast. He is a lifelong Alaskan who grew up in a small village called Bristol Bay, home of the largest salmon run in the world. He’s also worked union construction jobs in rural Alaska, from building houses, working on remote health clinics and canneries, and on a crew that installed the sewer system in the Bristol Bay Borough. Hill spent nearly 25 years working as a teacher, a principal, and a superintendent. And he’s running a campaign focused on unrigging the system so that it works for everyday Alaskans.

“Working people won’t have our fair shake until billionaires and big corporations pay their fair share,” he wrote in his policy platform. “One in every six dollars spent in the 2024 election cycle came from the bank account of a billionaire. When billionaires buy elections, they also buy the people they’re getting elected. We need to overturn Citizens United and take action to stop billionaires from buying elections.”

Matt Maasdam is running to flip Michigan 07. The district is currently represented by Republican Tom Barrett. While in Congress, Barrett voted to defund healthcare, supported attacks on Social Security and Medicaid, and dragged his feet on releasing the Epstein files. Barrett also ran an ad with a wrong election date in a Black-owned newspaper, after which prompted an ethics investigation. The Cook Political Report calls this race a toss-up, so this is one of Democrats’ opportunities to flip the House that deserves our attention. We’re supporting Maasdam for this seat, who is running his campaign on fighting corruption.

Maasdam is a former Navy SEAL who served overseas in Iraq, Afghanistan, Africa, and the Pacific. He was then chosen to serve as President Barack Obama’s Military Aide. Maasdam understands that when billionaires and corporate lobbyists pour money into politics, ordinary people get drowned out. That’s why he rejects corporate PAC money and stands up to the special interests that are raising the cost of health care, undermining working families, and putting their own pocketbooks over people. Matt served our country for over 20 years in the Navy and knows what it takes to fight the toughest challenges. We are proud to endorse him and look forward to helping him win.

Jamie Ager is running to flip North Carolina 11. This district was recently redistricted and is currently represented by Republican Chuck Edwards, who profits from McDonald’s franchises while voting for the largest cut to SNAP food benefits in history. According to American Bridge, Edwards also opposed expanding Medicaid in North Carolina, and more recently voted for Republicans’ megabill that cut Medicaid programs that 143,000 North Carolinians in his district rely on for health insurance. Trump has endorsed Edwards as a “MAGA Warrior.”

We’re endorsing Jamie Ager, a fourth-generation farmer, who is aligned with End Citizens United’s mission to get Big Money out of politics. Watch Ager talk about how Congress has to fight corruption within itself. As Ager said: “It’s an honor to be endorsed by End Citizens United and to stand up against greedy special interests. Working people in North Carolina are struggling to make ends meet because corporations and billionaires hold too much power over elected officials. We need to root out this corruption and refocus on serving everyday people by lowering costs, making quality health care more accessible, and investing in our communities. I’m grateful to work with End Citizens United to bring ethics and transparency into our campaign finance system.”

Lindsay James is running to flip Iowa 02, now represented by Republican Ashely Hinson, who is running for Senate. Now that it’s an open race, there’s a shot that Democrats can win back the seat. In the upcoming Democratic primary, ECU is proud to endorse James.

James is a pastor, one of the growing number of clergy who are running for Congress as Democrats across the country. And like many Democrats this campaign cycle, James is running on making life more affordable for everyday Americans. James was moved to run for Congress after seeing Republicans gut healthcare in their 2025 mega-bill. She’s campaigning on expanding insulin, so that Iowans can get the life-saving medicine without facing financial ruin; protecting mobile home residents from predatory corporate landlords looking to price-gouge hardworking families; champion affordable housing and mental health care, advocating for policies that strengthen communities from the ground up. James is the kind of fighter who speaks directly to people’s needs, and she’s the kind of anti-corruption fighter we need in Congress.

The path to win the House runs through districts like these. Each of these champions is showing how Democrats across the country can use their commitment to anti-corruption values to talk to everyday Americans who are fed up with this Republican oligarchy.