Boston Globe Endorses Upstart Social Entrepreneur For Mass Senator

When Alan Khazei, the founder of City Year and one of the social sector's architects of the Serve America Act, announced that he was running for Senate, I wrote that I hoped it was for real, and not just to "shape the conversation." With rising poll numbers, fundraising help from New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, and a recent endorsement by the Boston Globe, Khazei has made clear that he is in it for real.

The Globe endorsed Khazei as the Democratic candidate best suited to grow into a great senator. Importantly, their endorsement seems to have been largely motivated by his demonstrated capacity to build coalitions of diverse actors to achieve tangible results.

Interestingly, they call this sort of legislative wrangling an "entrepreneurial progressivism." Considering how messy the democratic process is, in this case, what seems entrepreneurial is one's willingness to get one's hand dirty and work unceasingly even at sometimes thankless tasks.

I would be incredibly excited to see Khazei in the senate, not from the standpoint of directing more resources to social entrepreneurship, but because of the way he might bring the hallmarks of the social entrepreneur's mindset - systemic thinking, tenacity, and a lack of ideological baggage - to government reform and social problem solving.

For political junkies, the race is fascinating. This stage is just a Democratic primary for the larger race. According to a recent Rasmussen poll, the front-runner is still State Attorney General Martha Coakley (36%) , with Congressmen Michael Capuano in second (21%). Yet in the last week or so, Khazei has moved from single digits to 14%, catching Boston Celtics part owner Stephen Pagliuca (who is bringing his own significant wealth to the race). What's more, some 75% of likely voters are still unsure of who they will vote for.

With the special election a week from today, there's not much time left, and like his Barackian predecessor, Khazei is calling on young people to help with the last minute organizing.

A few days ago, I received an email from Echoing Green fellow Jonny Dorsey urging friends to join him volunteering for Alan in Massachusetts. I can think of no better way to emphasize the excitement around his candidacy:

***

Friends,

Next weekend I’m going to travel to Massachusetts to campaign for a hero of mine, Alan Khazei. Alan is running in the Democratic Primary to fill Ted Kennedy’s seat in the United States Senate. I’m writing to ask you to join me in Boston December 5-8 to campaign for the final 4 days of this election.

Alan Khazei is the torchbearer and a chief architect of the service movement. He co-founded City Year, a pioneering program that allows young Americans to give a year of public service to our country. From day one, Khazei’s plan was to build City Year as an “action tank”, a model to be used as the basis for a government service program that would allow every American to service. That dream became a reality when Clinton called for Americorps, the national service program that Ted Kennedy stewarded into law. Since then, 2 million youth have devoted themselves to a higher calling through this program. And it’s only getting bigger. Khazei went on to form “Be The Change”, which designed and helped pass the Edward M Kennedy Serve America Act, the biggest expansion of service since FDR, which will grow Americorps to 250,000 young Americans a year. That scale of service will transform our nation, both through the work these young people will do in classrooms, clinics, and communities across the nation, and in the engagement it will catalyze in volunteers for the rest of their lives. I believe that the expansion of service is the greatest legacy of Ted Kennedy and the most positive movement in our nation today. Alan Khazei is the leader of that movement.

I first met Alan when he took the time to sit down with the alternative spring break Anuraag and I organized. He spent two hours telling his story, sharing his vision, and discussing his views on leadership. He beamed with energy and optimism as he told us about the power of individuals and communities dedicated to a higher cause. I then got to see him in action at the Service Nation Summit, a meeting he organized at Columbia where our nation’s leaders – including candidates Obama and McCain – came together to profess the importance of service and galvanize energy around passing the Kennedy Serve America Act. Khazei could have stood on stage, introducing the amazing people he’d brought together for this worthy cause, and accepted well deserved thanks. Instead, he humbly stood in the background, allowing others to stake their claim as co-leaders in the service movement. A man with his vision, his sense of purpose, and his humility is exactly who we need in the United States senate.

As I said, I’m writing to ask you to join me. Come campaign. This race is going to be extremely tight – the winner may get the nomination with only 150,000 votes. And it’s going to be close. This is one of those times when every single volunteer matters so much to the outcome of the race.

If you’ve never campaigned before, you have no idea how amazing the feeling is. The Obama campaign was my first time seriously engaging in politics, and knocking on doors taught me more about our nation and myself than I ever imagined it could. And there is no better feeling in the world than knowing you played a role in moving the nation towards a vision you believe in.

New Yorkers, round trip bus tickets are $40. Washingtonians, you can get there for $140 round trip. Californians, you can do a round trip for $259. I will find you housing. If you cannot come, please consider helping in another way! Here are a few ideas:

1. Make phone calls from home, or organizing phone banks. I’m really hoping a strong Stanford phone bank will form!
2. Make a donation. Alan needs to raise $45K a day to stay competitive on TV!
3. Get in touch with friends in Massachusetts and make sure they vote! Maybe you can even convince someone to volunteer!

This is a long note, and I’m struggling to capture all I want to say. In the end, here it is. Alan Khazei is one of those people who exudes the warmth you only find in someone whose heart is sincerely and completely committed to others. On top of that, he is one of the most capable changemakers of our time. If enough people come together, and Alan pulls off this win, I strongly believe volunteering on this campaign will be something you’ll be proud of for the rest of your life.

Email me if you’re in.

Jonny

Resources:

• Khazei’s campaign website: www.alanforsenate.com
• Khazei’s videos: http://www.alanforsenate.com/index.php/videos
• The latest Rasmussen poll, showing Khazei can win, but needs your help: http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/elections2/election_2010/election_2010_senate_elections/massachusetts/election_2010_massachusetts_democratic_senate_primary
• The Boston Globe’s endorsement: http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2009/11/29/for_democrats___alan_khazei_for_senate/
• A video Larry Lessig made endorsing Khazei: http://blip.tv/file/2911614
• General Wesley Clark’s endorsement: http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/11/general_wesley.html?comments=all#readerComm
• An endorsement from Jonathan Alter of Newsweek that speaks about Khazei’s meaningful differences from the other candidates on education: http://www.newsweek.com/id/220526

(Photo: Alan Khazei for Senate)