Launching Strong! Campaign Kickoff

On July 20th, we hosted our 2026 campaign launch party at the San José Peace and Justice Center. It was exciting to see and hear from a variety of different community leaders and to greet familiar faces from our 2024 campaign–the most successful Green Party campaign in the country that cycle with 6.4% of the vote!

The speakers raised a variety of different issues that are important to this campaign and to the communities of District 19: abolishing ICE and removing police from schools, reparations for American Freedmen, ending the genocide in Gaza, and addressing the recent lithium battery fire at Moss Landing. It was a high energy event in which we saw the possibilities of our collective power.

Campaign donations and lobbying from AIPAC, weapons contractors, police unions, pesticide manufacturers, energy companies and others keep power out of the hands of the people. As Pajaro Valley Unified School District Trustee and campaign staffer Gabriel Medina stated:

“Palestinian families are being bombed by US funded weapons. Children are being buried in rubble. And at the same time, here in Watsonville and other places, we're watching ICE vans pull up to homes, detain parents, and disappear green card holders with no warning and no due process, no humanity. These aren't isolated systems. They are deeply connected.”

In the Dougherty 2026 campaign we are working to build a coalition of communities calling for humanity and justice.

We are for the many, not the money.

We invite you to watch the full event video showcasing our inspiring speakers and their impactful speeches below. Feel free to share it with your communities!

Featured Speakers

• Brian Roeder: Co-founder, Never Again Moss Landing Activist Group

• Chris Lodgson: Lead Organizer, Coalition for a Just & Equitable California

• Nuha Khan: Executive Director, Muslim American Alliance

• Gabriel Medina: Trustee for Area III, PVUSD School Board

• Sean Dougherty: Congressional Candidate for California’s 19th District

Thank you to everyone who attended and to all who support this campaign!