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Color Of Change PAC Endorses Fanon Rucker, Harold Pryor, Deborah Gonzalez, Eric Rinehart, Pasty Austin-Gaston, Shalena Cook Jones, Holly Mitchell and Lucy McBath

Color Of Change PAC Intensifies Campaign To Elect Progressive Candidates Up and Down the Ballot, Particularly Powerful Progressive District Attorneys, Across the Country

New York, NY — Today, Color Of Change PAC announced it is endorsing Fanon Rucker for Prosecutor in Hamilton County, OH, Harold Pryor for State Attorney in Broward County, FL, Deborah Gonzalez for District Attorney in Athens-Clarke and Oconee Counties, GA, Eric Rinehart for State Attorney in Lake County, IL, Patsy Austin-Gaston for District Attorney in Gwinnett County, GA, Shalena Cook Jones for District Attorney in Chatham County, GA and Holly Mitchell for Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, CA.

COC PAC is also endorsing Lucy McBath in her reelection campaign to serve as U.S. Representative for Georgia’s 6th Congressional District.

Earlier this year, Color Of Change PAC endorsed candidates Kim Foxx, Kim Gardner, Monique Worrell, George Gascón, and Karen McDonald. Each won their primaries and will be up for election in November.  

With the tragedies of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Elijah McClain and Jacob Blake bringing more visibility to police violence and systemic injustice, Color Of Change PAC’s goal to shift how the public views prosecutors and how prosecutors do their jobs is even more salient. Many of the barriers to racial justice in this country, particularly who holds power, are more evident now than they have ever been. Prosecutors are mostly white and male, and nearly 85 percent run for DA positions completely unopposed. With these endorsements, Color Of Change PAC continues its tradition of endorsing district attorney candidates offering plans that can help move Black people forward.

“People continue to take to the streets across the country because they recognize that this is the means to draw sustained attention to their legitimate pain and anger and demand that those in power listen. And no one holds more power in our justice system than prosecutors. They decide who to prosecute, what the charges will be, and routinely make decisions that impact the lives of Black and brown people,” said Arisha Hatch, Executive Director of Color Of Change PAC. “We need candidates like Rucker, Pryor and Gonzalez to win their elections and push for the changes our communities are demanding in the streets and now, as we head to November, at the ballot boxes.”

Fanon Rucker is an attorney who is a strong advocate for reentry programs. If elected, Rucker will create or support the creation of a Reentry Court that will help reduce an offender’s habitual relapse into crime and improves public safety through the use of judicial oversight. If elected, Rucker would be the first Black prosecutor in the county’s history.

Harold Pryor is a former attorney running to decarcerate poverty and initiate ground level criminal justice reform while not compromising the safety of communities. Pryor led the charge to have the statue of the former Florida Gov. Napoleon B. Broward removed from the Central Courthouse.

Deborah Gonzalez is a former state representative running to end mass incarceration and increase transparency and accountability in the criminal justice system. Her criminal justice platform contains much-needed innovations for a county that has had just two district attorneys in the last 48 years.

Eric Rinehart is a former public defender who plans to bring innovative reforms to Lake County. He hopes to ensure equal treatment for all under the law by reporting on the racial, gender, and class characteristics of victims and defendants and employing attorneys who specialize in immigration law, among other progressive criminal justice reform policies.

Patsy Austin-Gaston is the current supervising attorney and director of community outreach with the Gwinnett County Solicitor’s Office. Her platform, which includes plans to establish a conviction integrity unit within the first 100 days of her administration, is informed by her 30 years of experience as an attorney.

Shalena Cook Jones is a former assistant district attorney running to bring equity to the criminal justice system, in part by expanding the use of accountability courts for nonviolent offenders with mental illness or addiction.

Sen. Holly Mitchell is the acting Democratic State Senator for CA’s 30th Senate District. As County Supervisor, Sen. Mitchell would implement a broad swath of progressive criminal justice reforms, including reducing jail phone call rates and eliminating commissary markups statewide.

Lucy McBath is running for reelection as a U.S. Representative for Georgia’s 6th Congressional District. Since the death of her son Jordan Davis, Lucy McBath has been an advocate for common-sense gun reform. If re-elected, she will continue to work to implement background checks for all firearm purchases, raise the minimum age to purchase a gun to 21, and keep domestic abusers from acquiring guns.

Color Of Change PAC, one of the nation’s largest Black-led racial justice organizations, plans to support these candidates by building enthusiasm and mobilizing voters who are often left out. The organization leads an education campaign that informs voters about the link between criminal justice reform and voting. One of the first-ever political organizing groups to figure out how to reach and engage its members online, Color Of Change PAC has ramped up its digital tactics, including digital ads, virtual phone banking, and town halls in response to the limitations COVID-19 has put on in-person advocacy and voter engagement.

Color Of Change PAC draws the link between voter turnout in district attorney races and real change in Black communities. The PAC seeks to endorse candidates that support the criminal justice demands which will bring about essential reforms; these include ending money bail, reducing collateral consequences for immigrant defendants, protecting kids within the juvenile justice system, holding police accountable, and being more transparent with the public.

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Color Of Change PAC is a Political Action Committee focused on building independent Black political power, amplifying Black voices, electing candidates who share our values, and holding them accountable to our communities. For more information on Color Of Change PAC, visit votingwhileblack.com.

Paid Pol. Adv. paid for by ColorOfChange PAC,
1714 Franklin St., Oakland, CA 94612, independently of and not authorized by any federal, state, or local candidate or candidate’s committee.