EMILYs List Endorses Katie Porter for Congress in California’s 45th District
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, endorsed Katie Porter for Congress in California’s 45th District. Porter, who is running for a Republican-held seat that will be critical to Democrats’ chances for retaking the House, is the first of many House challenger endorsements EMILYs List will be making in the 2018 cycle.
“EMILYs List is thrilled to endorse Katie Porter in this critical race to take back the House of Representatives. We need leaders on Capitol Hill who aren’t afraid to stand up to Trump associates, big banks, and entrenched special interests who wield tremendous power over the White House, the Trump family, and a Republican-controlled Congress,” said EMILYs List President Stephanie Schriock. “As California’s financial watchdog in a historic mortgage settlement, Katie held bad actors accountable and won billions in relief for California homeowners. EMILYs List is proud to join our own Senator Kamala Harris and Senator Elizabeth Warren in our enthusiastic support of this rising star in Democratic politics.”
“The people of Orange County deserve a fearless and independent leader like Katie – not a Donald Trump ally like Rep. Mimi Walters,” continued Schriock. “Walters has done the people in her district a disservice by refusing to stand up to Trump, voting for Trump’s cruel health care bill that would take insurance away from 23 million people, and repeatedly voting against measures that would protect the environment and slow the effects of climate change. We can and will take back the House of Representatives – starting by flipping seats from Republicans like Mimi Walters who allow abuses of power to go unchecked.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren added, “Katie is a fighter! She's been in the trenches with me fighting for families for nearly two decades–and she's gotten real results. She's fought relentlessly for important protections that safeguard consumers and force banks to give families a fair shake. There's no one I trust more to take on Donald Trump and the entrenched special interests in Washington on behalf of working families.”
“Katie has spent her career battling powerful Wall Street banks who take advantage of consumers and families,” said Sen. Kamala Harris. “She will be just as relentless in Congress fighting against the powerful Washington special interests on behalf of our families.”
Katie has spent nearly 20 years as a consumer advocate taking on Wall Street banks and powerful financial institutions that try to take advantage of middle-class families. The daughter of a farmer and a teacher, Katie saw firsthand how the farm crisis of the 1980s hurt families and communities. After graduating from Yale University, she went to Harvard Law School and learned bankruptcy law from influential professor Elizabeth Warren, with whom she co-authored a book on debt and credit law. She has earned national acclaim for her fights against unfair practices by Wall Street banks, credit card companies, student loan servicers, and predatory lenders. She was teaching law at the University of California – Irvine and raising her three young children in 2012 when then-Attorney General of California Kamala Harris asked Katie to serve as the California Monitor of the National Mortgage Settlement. The five biggest Wall Street banks had promised billions in relief to the homeowners they had cheated, and Katie held the banks' feet to the fire — securing $18 billion for California homeowners and helping tens of thousands of families in the state. She has worked to bring down credit card fees and is dedicated to ending the predatory banking practices that hurt women and families. Katie is running for Congress to get our economy working for all Californians and to fight back against a dangerous agenda that puts powerful interests ahead of people and families. Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris, now both United States senators, have endorsed Katie’s strong campaign. She lives in Irvine with her three children, where she is a longtime leader in her sons’ Cub Scout pack.
Katie is committed to increasing economic opportunity for middle-class families and taking on the special interests that take unfair advantage of those pursuing the American dream. A tenured professor, Katie founded a consumer protection legal clinic at the University of California Irvine. Katie was one of the first people to sound the alarm about Wall Street abuses in the housing market, and when elected she will continue to courageously speak truth to power and hold special interests accountable. Katie knows that we cannot take our natural resources for granted. She will fight back against the climate science deniers in Congress, and will work tirelessly to protect our environment for future generations. Katie is proud to live in a community that finds strength in its diversity, and in Congress she will fight to defend the rights of the most vulnerable among us as they come under attack.
EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, has raised over $500 million to support pro-choice Democratic women candidates – making them one of the most successful political organizations ever. Our grassroots community of over five million members helps Democratic women wage competitive campaigns – and win. We recruit and train candidates, support strong campaigns, research the issues that impact women and families, and turn out women voters. Since our founding in 1985, we have trained nearly 10,000 women to run and helped elect 116 women to the House, 23 to the Senate, 12 governors, and over 800 to state and local office. Forty percent of the candidates EMILYs List has helped elect to Congress have been women of color – including every single Latina, African American, and Asian American Democratic congresswoman currently serving.
