Sunrise Movement endorses Kina Collins in Illinois

Sunrise Movement, the grassroots network of outspoken youth climate advocates, is endorsing progressive activist Kina Collins for an Illinois House seat ahead of the midterm elections. 

The endorsement, first reported by The Hill, is the latest the group has issued to left-wing Democrats competing in primary bids to make Congress more liberal in the fall.

Collins, a gun control, climate and criminal justice movement leader, is running to replace incumbent Rep. Danny K. Davis in the state’s 7th Congressional District. The Democratic primary is slated for late June. 

“The urgency of this moment demands urgency from our leaders,” Collins said on Tuesday. “We need real change — we need a Green New Deal — here in Chicago that combats the climate crisis, creates good jobs, and that addresses environmental racism and the inequities that have persisted in our community.”

Sunrise’s endorsement comes after it has extensively rallied for populist causes with Collins, who hails from a humble, pro-union background in the Windy City. 

She appeared at a strike in Chicago to push for top climate provisions being kept in President Biden’s “Build Back Better” package during negotiations last year, a move that activist leaders said showed a commitment to the priorities they had pursued since Biden took over the White House. 

“Like us, Kina is an organizer,” said Paul Campion, an electoral organizer for Sunrise, noting her outside involvement during the tense discussions around Build Back Better. “She showed up for me when I was on hunger strike for climate justice, knows the Green New Deal is essential for our district, and I trust her to fight alongside us in Congress.”

Collins, who has amassed support from progressive organizations since her campaign launch over the summer, has previously attempted to oust Davis, ultimately losing in a multi-candidate primary last year. 

Now, gearing up for what Democrats expect to be a difficult year of primary challenges and competition from Republicans alike, those on the left see a chance to make more inroads in Illinois. Last cycle, progressive Rep. Marie Newman successfully beat conservative Democrat and former Rep. Dan Lipinski in the state’s 3rd Congressional District. 

They see Collins as the type of challenger who can help expand their bench by promoting principles like expanded health care access and rooting out corporate money in politics to address inequalities. 

“Kina has always stood with the people,” said Varshini Prakash, Sunrise’s executive director. “IL-07 deserves a tried and true organizer to represent them in Congress, someone who knows what it’s like to come from a working class family, and who’s faced the same struggles that they have.”

The climate group has stepped up its electoral involvement in preparation of November. 

It recently announced support for five progressive challengers hoping to defeat more moderate Democrats across the country, including Erica Smith in North Carolina’s 1st Congressional District, Greg Casar in Texas’s 35th Congressional District, Jessica Cisneros in Texas’s 28th Congressional District, Nida Allam in North Carolina’s 4th Congressional District, and Summer Lee in Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District.