Could rural America become a hotbed of progressive politics?

Luke Mayville, co-founder of the grassroots movement Reclaim Idaho and a lecturer of political philosophy at Boise State University’s Honors College, certainly thinks so.

His conviction comes from firsthand experience. In 2018, Mayville's work in Idaho powered a statewide referendum on expanding Medicaid to victory—but in Idaho, in contrast to other states where Medicaid expansion succeeded at the ballot box, the proposition won in rural counties, including counties where Republican candidates typically win by wide margins.

On this episode, he talks with associate editor Matt Sitman about that campaign, arguing that if we want to progressive causes to succeed, we should put our energies into on-the-ground organizing and local persuasion.

For further reading

·     Do Something Big, Luke Mayville

·     Drinking Alone, Jonathan Malesic

·     Democracy in America?, The Commonweal Editors