Hope for the Future
Arizona List Spring Intern 2026
Thomi Brown
One of my most prominent memories from the summer of 2024 is driving back to my small conservative town blasting Femininominon by Chappell Roan from the car speakers with my two closest friends from high school. We were headed back from attending a watch party for the gubernatorial primaries in Missouri. The candidate we were supporting was Crystal Quade; a prominent leader in Missouri for numerous years. And she had won her democratic primary. Missouri is not a blue state, so we knew the chances of a democratic candidate winning the gubernatorial race in the fall would be far-fetched. But that didn’t dim the glimmer of hope we had that evening for the possibility of the first female governor of the state that I grew up in.
Earlier that summer Vice President Kamala Harris had announced that she would be running in the 2024 presidential campaign in place of President Biden. Despite not being able to vote, I was elated at the possibility of a female president. Partly because of this, and partly because I wouldn’t be 18 at the time of the election, I did what I could to get involved. I phonebanked, I textbanked, and I helped share voter education and registration materials while working part time as a nanny and part time as a dog sitter all summer while listening to Charli XCX and Olivia Rodrigo. This eventually led me to Crystal Quade’s watch party where I watched in real time the votes come in. Missouri democrats decided that they wanted Crystal Quade to be their candidate!
I wanted to continue the work that I had started in the summer of 2024 by helping pro-choice democratic women get elected, in the state where I decided to go to college. I began my freshman year at Arizona State University, where I started to get involved in student organizations on campus. I loved the work that I was able to do on campus, but I felt like I could be doing more off campus, too. I had heard through a friend who had previously interned with Arizona List the type of work that she was able to do. The next semester, I eagerly applied to be a part of the team. Through my time with Arizona List, I have gained so many skills and connections through working on numerous local elections and helping democratic women get elected into these positions. When I was knocking doors for Berdetta Hodge, I was able to talk to numerous community members about the voter issues in Tempe. However, I also got to speak with a lot of voters, who were only interested in voting for democratic candidates. When this happened, I was able to explain what Arizona List is and the work that we do and how Councilwoman Hodge was endorsed by AZ List. The same thing goes for the calls that I made for Tempe City Council and the Salt River Project election. I frequently ended up speaking with voters who were happy just to hear that I was working for Arizona List and wanted to learn more about the candidates that are endorsed. With each call and door that I knock on advocating for these powerful and inspiring women, I am reminded of the hope that I have for our future.
– Thomi Brown, 2026 Spring Intern