Rep. Yadira Caraveo: Responsive Leadership is the Way to Win

By Rep. Yadira Caraveo

Many of our rural communities in this country are under water. After decades of chronic disinvestment, they risk losing access to competitive options for basic services like education, childcare, and healthcare. They are reeling as the opioid epidemic still devastates American families. Worsening climate change and corporate monopolies are threatening the long-term survival of small, family-owned farms. And the cost of everything from fuel to feed has risen faster than families can keep up with.

As they face these myriad — and growing — challenges, and watch as pleas for state and federal aid go ignored, many of these rural voters have turned to the politicians stoking division and discontent in our country. But the truth is, they are simply turning to the loudest voice in the room. Politicians like Donald Trump are doing nothing to address the root causes of our rural communities’ problems.

Last year, I was elected in a brand new District in Colorado that encompasses both rural and suburban communities. When I came to Congress, I fought for a seat on the House Agriculture Committee, and I’m proud to serve as Ranking Member on the Rural Development Subcommittee.

And after I was sworn in, I got to work building relationships in rural areas of my District. To me, this was a basic and necessary effort to represent communities and families in my District. For the past year, I have been listening and learning about these communities’ needs so I could best advocate for them in Congress. And though every state and community is different, as my first year in Congress comes to a close, I am pleading with Democrats to heed this advice:

You have to show up. Ceding the rural vote to Republicans cannot be a forgone conclusion. But to win, Democrats have to show up, and we have to do the work.

As I have traveled around rural communities in Colorado over the past year, I’m astounded by how surprised my rural constituents are that I’m simply showing up. They are surprised I care about how they experience the very real problems in our community and our country. But to me, showing up and earnestly caring about your constituents is the foundation of this job. It’s not just a political imperative, it’s a moral one.

Whether I’m visiting sugar beet farmers to discuss crop insurance policies, supporting high-speed internet infrastructure across Colorado farmland, or pushing to save rural health facilities in Congress, my constituents see that I’m showing up for them.

And as I do that work, as I show up time and again, people who once knew me as the target of Republican political attack ads increasingly see me as a trusted advocate for their interests in Washington. Rural families who were surprised when I showed up at their farm now welcome me as their representative and their friend.

We may not agree on every policy issue, and there are probably some areas where we won’t see eye-to-eye. But there’s much more that unites us than divides us. Working-class people across my District want to provide for their families, own a home in a safe community, and give their children the opportunity to work hard and live the American Dream.

Heading into 2024, I deeply believe this responsive leadership is the way to win in rural (and urban) areas. Americans respect their elected officials when they engage with all of their constituents, not just the ones they agree with.

And this approach isn’t just the key for Democrats to make gains among rural voters; it’s a solution for much of the division plaguing our country.

In a united, functioning democracy, no one is forgotten or left behind. Right now, the Democratic Party holds the values and policy ideas to help working-class families in communities across the country. But to do the job in rural areas, we must start by showing up. Listening. Helping. Over time, this responsive leadership will help us win. And importantly, it will help put our country on a stronger pathway for generations to come.

Yadira Caraveo is a United States Congresswoman representing Colorado’s 8th Congressional district and was first elected in 2022.