There isn't a state in the country with a better group of online activists than Texas. The more attention I pay to their work, the more impressed I become.

First, you've got the individual efforts of many, many talented bloggers. There are a lot of states that would be fortunate to have a single, progressive site as good as Capitol Annex, Burnt Orange Report, Off the Kuff, or Greg's Opinion (a list heavily biased by the folks I read regularly but by no means exclusive). That's not even counting relatively newer bloggers who are engaging in the state (folks like Rachel -- who actually wrote an open letter to her state rep, offering to set him up with a DLCCWeb-powered site).  

Second, these folks have organized an alliance to unify the efforts of bloggers and netroots activists in the state to promote progressive ideas and candidates. They promote each others' posts, raise money for candidates, organize offline events, and have developed an advertising network.

On July 4 I marched with volunteers and staff for Jerry Sullivan, Democratic candidate in Iowa House district 59.

We don't hear much about state legislative races on national blogs, because it would be overwhelming to keep up with what's going on all over the country.

But you should get involved on behalf of a good Democrat running for your state's Assembly, House or Senate. Here's why.

1. The 2010 census looms.

Looking at states like Florida, Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania, Republicans hold more seats in the U.S. House of Representatives than they "should" have if you consider the statewide strength of Democrats and Republicans. One big reason is that Republicans dominated those states' legislatures during the last round of redistricting.

If you want an enduring Democratic majority and you live in a state with multiple Congressional districts, you should focus on getting more Democrats in the legislature.

2. Many policy matters are determined at the state level.

Even if Democrats already control your state legislature, I'll bet there aren't enough progressives working on some of the environmental, labor or election reform issues you care about.

In the Iowa legislature, clean elections reform and regulation of confined-animal feeding operations (CAFOs) are among the many issues that our Democratic leadership refuses to move forward.

The difference between a slim Democratic majority and a solid Democratic majority could make or break key legislative initiatives in the next two years.

In 2007, a "fair share" bill that would have strengthened unions in this right-to-work state didn't have enough support to clear the Iowa House. If we increase the Democratic majority from the current 53 seats (out of 100) to 55 or 57 seats, perhaps that bill could advance.

3. Getting progressive Democrats elected to state legislatures will build our bench for future House, Senate or gubernatorial races.

Candidates who have served in the legislature are often more knowledgeable on a range of policy issues. They are more seasoned on the campaign trail. They may also have good name recognition and contacts with the key political journalists in your state.

4. You probably can find a competitive statehouse race near you, no matter where you live.

Maybe you're in a state where the outcome of the presidential race is predetermined, and there are no competitive Congressional districts.

I'm betting you wouldn't have to go far to find some good Democrat facing a tough contest.

For example, let's say you live in Iowa City or Cedar Rapids. Barack Obama is heavily favored to win Iowa's electoral votes for reasons I discuss here. U.S. Senator Tom Harkin is getting a pass; his challenger has very little money or name recognition. Congressman Dave Loebsack represents your strongly Democratic district (D+7) in an area where Obama will have huge coattails. So, where should you volunteer?

Nate Willems, a former regional director for Howard Dean and occasional contributor to MyDD, is trying to hold House district 29, covering parts of Linn County and Johnson County. Longtime Democratic incumbent Ro Foege is retiring.

Eric Palmer, a freshman incumbent from Oskaloosa, could use your help in House district 75. The Republican he beat in 2006 is trying to win his seat back.

Elesha Gayman is another good freshman legislator. She narrowly defeated a two-term incumbent in House district 84, which is fairly evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans.

Palmer and Gayman are among five Democratic representatives in Iowa who have been targeted this year in corporate-funded radio and television commercials.

Swati Dandekar, current representative for House district 36, is trying to win Senate district 18, which has been held for a long time by retiring Republican Mary Lundby. That district includes a large area in Linn County.

If you're lucky, some blogger in your own state has compiled a handy list of the battleground districts. Otherwise, get active on your state community blog for Democrats and ask for advice on where to volunteer.

If you live near a state border, you may want to help a worthy Democrat in a neighboring state.

5. Your individual actions are more likely to make a difference in a statehouse race.

By all means, donate to and volunteer for Obama's campaign if you are inspired to do so, especially if you live in a competitive state.

But your money and volunteer energy will go further in a short-staffed legislative race.

Also, if you are considering a political career, either as a candidate or a campaign staffer, you will get more hands-on experience with a variety of tasks if you volunteer for a statehouse candidate.

You may think that Obama will give down-ticket candidates all the help they need in November. But depending on where you live, the Obama campaign may not be putting its GOTV muscle in the crucial legislative districts.

I was very concerned to learn a few days ago that the Iowa Democratic Party has in effect shut down its "coordinated campaign" and transferred control over GOTV statewide to the Obama campaign.

What's best for maximizing Obama's presidential vote is not necessarily what's best for maximizing the number of Democrats elected to the state legislature. For instance, Obama's field plan for Johnson County and Linn County might focus on student precincts in Iowa City and urban precincts in Cedar Rapids.

However, we need strong GOTV efforts in other parts of Linn and Johnson Counties if we want to elect Willems in House district 29 or Dandekar in Senate district 18.

I have no idea whether the Obama campaign's field plan for Polk County will focus on the precincts we need to elect Jerry Sullivan in House district 59.

Since I see little chance of John McCain winning Iowa's electoral votes, I would rather spend my volunteer time on competitive districts. Whether Obama wins Iowa by 5 percent or 10 percent is less important than getting more and better Democrats in the Iowa House and Senate.

I look forward to reading your comments on this topic. Also, please take the poll after the jump.

I'm blowing the dust off of this user diary because I want to start a conversation.

There are 7,382 legislators across the country, and they represent every conceivable kind of district. Most have been using radio, television, and mail for years, but for many, the Internet remains unfamiliar. They see its potential but have reservations about its cost, complexity, and challenges.

This cycle, our committee partnered with Wired for Change to introduce a resource that reduces the barriers for campaigning online. We call it DLCCWeb.

Our goal is to make the Internet simple and affordable enough that all of our legislative candidates can build and update their own websites. They can choose from a range of templates and color schemes to create the best design for their campaigns. Blog publishing is built right into DLCCWeb, along with advocacy tools, online fundraising, and social network integration.

This cycle, more than 200 candidates in 30 states (with a whole range of technology comfort levels) are using the Internet in a way that they haven't before because of this service. To me, that represents a major step forward in participatory democracy and a big advantage for Democrats at the state level. Check out a little marketing video that Wired for Change put together about DLCCWeb here.

We are also launching a new website to practice what we preach.

DLCC.org will be a clearinghouse for news about statehouses and legislative elections. The centerpiece will be a blog, hosted right on the front page, which will be updated multiple times a day, at least five days a week. Most posts will be short and quick, though each will include some sort of commentary and context. Most content will be written by our staff, but as we move forward, we plan to encourage contributions from our elected leaders and allies.

We are ready to talk about our nation's statehouses. We want to engage you to help us identify the next generation of Democratic leaders, to set real Democratic agendas in the legislatures, and to build new majorities before the next round Congressional redistricting.

I hope you'll take a moment to visit these sites and let me know what you think.  Leave a comment here or there or send me an email at compton[at]dlcc.org. If you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear from you.

Bumped from the diaries -- jonathan

Republican Tom Dempster is the Assistant Majority Leader seeking his fourth term in the South Dakota state Senate.

Obviously Dempster has some cursory knowledge of the filing process in the state, given he's been through the process three times. Or so you'd think...

The "bipartisan" California Voters First is trying to gin up signatures to get on the ballot in November.

A lot of folks--Democrats and Republicans--support nonpartisan redistricting reform.

But when in doubt, follow the money.  

It looks like many suburban Albany-area legislative races are already starting to heat up for the 2008 cycle.

The Times-Union reported today that Saratoga County Supervisor Joanne Yepsen (D) may take on State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno (R), while former Saratoga Springs Mayor Valerie Keehn (D) may challenge Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco (R).

Democrats won the first round of redistricting yesterday, with victories in Mississippi and Virginia.  

Democrats flipped the Virginia Senate and the Mississippi Senate and expanded our majority in the Mississippi House.  All three chambers serve four-year terms.    

"Democrats now control the first three chambers that have already elected the legislators who will serve through the redistricting process," says DLCC Executive Director Michael Sargeant.  "We look forward to continuing our success in 2008."

Crossposted at DailyKos

After my diary from yesterday on the role of the state legislatures in the 2010 redistricting, I wanted to focus more at a twofold problem of what happens once the redistricting occurs.  One is what will happen to the Congressional delegation in certain states; the other is what will happen to the electoral votes for President.

For this, I turned to the Center for Politics' David Wasserman.  He actually projected what the census would look like not just in 2010, but also for 2020 and 2030.  We're talking long-term focus here.

More analysis after the fold.