My Electoral Cycles experience

Guest post by Brad Chodos-Irvine

Last May I received an email that I am sure many of you received as well from Emily Kathrein, Cascade’s Field Programs Manager. It was a call for applicants to participate in a new  leadership development program called Electoral Cycles.
This email arrived not that long after a gentleman named Lance David died in a bicycle accident on my daily commuting route from West Seattle into downtown Seattle. The morning of the crash, I came upon the scene as investigators were still gathering data. After waiting, the police let a few of us bicyclists through the blocked-off road. The image of Mr. David's and his crumpled bicycle was etched into my brain. I broke into tears that night as I rode back through the same intersection on the way home. How do we allow this kind of thing to happen? Our streets need to be safe for everyone - whether you walk, drive, ride transit or bike.
The timing of Cascade’s email was perfect. The program promised in-class workshops as well as hands-on work to help promote pro-bicycling candidates in the upcoming elections. Ensuring that my elected officials would also understand my vision of a safe Seattle.
I complain all the time about bad roads, unsafe conditions and experiences on the road, but this crash really shook me. I was worried about my own safety and the safety of every other bicyclist and pedestrian I saw. I know we can do better as a city to make the streets safer. And I believe we need to continue building the momentum towards bicycling infrastructure improvements that I have observed in my 20 years of commuting in Seattle. I wanted to learn how to bring change to Seattle so I applied to take part in Electoral Cycles.
After being interviewed for a position in the workshop, I soon learned I had been selected to join.  The class was made up of people from all over Seattle, all with interesting stories of why they participate.
We met bi-weekly and learned about the power of stories to make change and the inner working of non-profits. We also had a guest speaker during each class which has been one of the most interesting aspects of the classes. The speakers have included politicians like Nick Licata and Mike O'Brien, as well as representatives from national organizations and local bicycle advocates. 
One of our goals with the program was to dig deeper into what makes advocacy work. I had done my stints of phone banking and canvassing, but I wanted to do something different this time. I decided to host my own house party for Mike O’Brien, a speaker that made a great impression on me.
The hardest part of hosting a house party was getting over my own fear of asking my friends to join me in supporting a political candidate. I don't talk politics with everyone so it felt a little uncomfortable.
But Mike’s campaign staff made it easy, encouraging me to relay my own story of meeting Mike and the good impression he made at our Electoral Cycles workshop. It took some persistent reaching out, but eventually I was satisfied with the party’s turnout.
Mike arrived as guests were showing up and we spent the first hour mingling and talking. I later introduced him to the group, made a pitch to donate to the campaign, and Mike delivered his own story.
The most satisfying thing about hosting a house party was that it gave people a chance to directly interact with a city council member, and ask him questions they were personally interested in. Having that personal interaction is so important, and I feel that everyone went away with very positive feelings.  Again, it brought me back to my first Electoral Cycles class - storytelling is incredibly powerful. 
My work with this campaign and with the Electoral Cycles workshop is not over yet, but I found this experience to be one of the high points of my year thus far. I have found that I do have a voice and the power to push for changes that are important to me.  And I am going to use that power to make my city one of the best to live in - whether you choose to walk, drive, ride transit or bike.