Political Optimists

This is being written Oct. 1, the day the U.S. government shut down — not the best time to be introducing PAW articles about running for office. But with off-year elections next month, it’s a good time to talk to some of the Princetonians who have been involved in the political process.

You already know about Ted Cruz ’92, the Princeton debate champ who talked for 21 hours on the Senate floor as the government neared the shutdown deadline — he is not represented in this issue. But you might not have heard about Nicole Velasco ’08, Ravi Sangisetty ’03, or Jen DePalma ’96, all of whom ran unsuccessfully for office and learned some hard lessons along the way. Kathleen Kiely ’77 spoke to these three and other alumni — both winners and losers, from national races to municipal battles — about what the experience was like (page 24). Kiely calls them Princeton’s “contrarian caucus” because despite the unpleasantness of politics and regardless of the outcome, these alumni say they gained from the experience and don’t regret it one bit. 

It is at Princeton where Cruz honed his debating tactics. It’s also at Princeton where P.G. Sittenfeld ’07 learned skills that would help him bolster community education in Cincinnati, where he is now on the city council. Where Andrew Blumenfeld ’13 became interested in competing for a school board seat in California. And where Alabama Rep. Terri Sewell ’86 wrote a thesis called “Black Women in Politics: Our Time Has Come” — which she re-read during her campaign. Twenty-seven years later, the optimism in that document reminds her why she ran.