New Ad Campaign Launches Against Sen. Jeff Van Drew And Other Republicans Who Voted Against “For the People Act”

NJ Working Families’ Sue Altman: “Van Drew’s Vote Against HR1 Was The Most Shameful Flip-Flop Of His Career.”

Six-figure digital ad buy targets Sen. Jeff Van Drew and Nine Other Republicans in Congress who opposed popular democracy reform bill

New Jersey — Today, the Working Families Party announced a new aggressive digital ad campaign targeting Sen. Jeff Van Drew and nine other Republican lawmakers who voted against the passage of the “For the People Act” (HR 1). The For The People Act is legislation he voted for as a member of the Democratic Party in 2019.

“This reform bill will clean-up corruption in Washington, restore our democracy, and promote bipartisanship,” Van Drew said in 2019. “We need to restore our democracy to a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”

View the ad here.

The landmark “For the People Act” would expand voting rights protections and strengthen fair elections provisions across the nation. The ads are paid for by the Working Families Organization, a 501(c)4 advocacy organization affiliated with the Working Families Party.

“Apparently when Jeff Van Drew swore undying loyalty to Donald Trump, he gave up any commitment to protecting voting rights or getting money out of politics as part of the deal,” said Sue Altman, state director of New Jersey Working Families. “Van Drew’s vote against HR1 is his most shameful flip flop in a career full of them, and we are going to let voters in his district know all about it.”

H.R. 1 was approved last week in the US House of Representatives, without a single Republican vote.

The six-figure effort will also include district-wide digital buys in the following districts:

• Rep. Dave Schweikert (AZ-06)

• Rep. Scott Perry (PA-10)

• Rep. Young Kim (CA-39)

• Rep. Steve Chabot (OH-01)

• Rep. Mike Garcia (CA-25)

• Rep. Matt Rosendale (MT-AL)

• Rep. Ashley Hinson (IA-01)

• Rep. Carlos Gimeniz (FL-26)

• Rep. Alex Mooney (WV-02)

“The legislators who voted against H.R. 1 put wealthy donors ahead of their own constituents’ right to vote, and we’re letting voters in their district know it,” said Maurice Mitchell, national director of the Working Families Party. “The For the People Act will strengthen the right to vote, clean up corruption, and reduce the role of big money in politics and put more power in the hands of the voters. Everyone who believes Americans deserve a real democracy should be on board.”

The campaign will include 15 and 30 second ads on online video platforms like Youtube and also connected TV platforms like HULU targeted mainly to moderate and independent voters, who, according to polling, overwhelmingly support HR 1. The ads will be supplemented by voter education on HR 1 through text banking in the weeks to come.

The ad campaign comes as Republicans in Georgia passed draconian voting rights restrictions. This year elected officials in 43 states have introduced more than 250 bills to prevent people from voting. By contrast, H.R. 1 would provide for same-day and automatic voter registration, expanded early voting, vote-by-mail, and absentee drop boxes. The For the People Act would also end partisan gerrymandering that lets politicians pick their voters instead of the other way around, provide for public financing of elections, and strengthen regulations on campaign finance. HR1 also received a 67% approval rating among American voters in a national poll conducted by Data for Progress with support spanning across party lines:  56% of Republicans, 68% of Independents, and 77% of Democrats.

The effort comes as the WFP continues to build momentum to drive a robust progressive platform under the Biden Administration, and hold Congress accountable to deliver on the needs of working families. In September 2020, the Working Families Party announced its People’s Charter, a visionary progressive platform that included provisions to strengthen voting rights protections and get money out of politics. Dozens of elected officials, from Members of Congress to state legislators to city council members, have endorsed the People’s Charter.

The Working Families Party is the grassroots political party of the multiracial working class.