Del. Sam Rasoul Takes Democratic Promise Initiative Statewide
ROANOKE - Delegate Sam Rasoul (D-11) announced that his campaign for Lieutenant Governor is expanding his Democratic Promise program to include all of Virginia. Rasoul began Democratic Promise in 2017 as a way to rebuild trust in the Democratic Party by reaching out to connect Virginians in need of help with government services.
The initiative had been limited to Roanoke and several nearby counties. This month, the program is expanding to include all regions of the commonwealth. The purpose and process remain the same: volunteers make phone calls to check in on their fellow Virginians and connect those in need of help with legislative staff members who can refer them to the appropriate government agencies.
“It’s proactive constituent services,” said Rasoul. “Typically elected officials wait for a phone call or an email from someone who needs help. The problem is a lot of people don’t know what services are even available, or don’t know who to call. Democratic Promise goes above and beyond simply waiting for a phone call.”
The campaign is looking for volunteers who are able to phone bank safely from home and want to reach out to neighbors in their area who may be in need of assistance.
“I believe that the government should serve the people, and a lot of people aren’t aware of the services available,” said Carol, a longtime Democratic Promise volunteer. “There are a lot of instances where people can get help, but they don’t know who to call.”
The goal of expanding the initiative statewide is to operationalize new ways of reaching out to voters by building trust.
“We need to change the way we campaign as Democrats,” said Samantha Litchford, Director of Democratic Promise. “If every time you hear from your elected official, they just want your vote, that's extractive. Democratic Promise is one way we can transform the way we campaign by checking in and offering to help.”
“After a year of dealing with COVID-19 and the economic impacts of the pandemic, a lot of folks are in a really tough spot,” said Rasoul. “People who may never have needed certain government services before might not know where to turn for help. The state government should work to serve them. Virginians deserve all the help we can give them.”
People who would like to volunteer with Democratic Promise can sign up online.