Fred Wellman
October 13, 2026 · Newsletter
21 Days Left: Same Task, Same Ask
Asking for money is not my favorite, nor is it what I do best
When I first created this Substack, I did so with the intention of building a people-powered movement built on the value of service and the importance of maintaining our democracy. You all have been tuning into this page regularly and listening to my podcasts over on MeidasTouch for years now, and I don’t enjoy using this platform for anything other than the content you all have signed up for.
But the urgency is clear. The stakes are high. Missouri is energized like never before. If we want to make a safe landing and actually win this race to save our democracy, I need your help today.
We can actually win this thing and make a difference here
To anyone who isn’t convinced that this race is one of the most competitive House races today, I want you to take a look at this:
“Lean R.” Fox News shifted this race in our favor. The environment for Democrats and those who want to fight back against Trump’s MAGA cult has never been better. Missouri’s 2nd District has been waiting for a moment like this for over 30 years.
Or how about this:
A 51–49 toss-up. It can’t get any closer to a dead heat than that. According to Fifty Plus One — the folks formerly from ABC’s FiveThirtyEight — we’re one of only 7 toss-up House races in the country. Out of the hundreds of congressional elections happening in November, we’re one of just 7 that are like this.
So your contribution is going to make an outsized difference here than it would elsewhere.
MAGA might be outspending us, but they can’t make up for people power
And therein lies the real difficulty this campaign is facing right now.
Within those 7 toss-up races, Republicans are paying much more attention to us and pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars here.
They’re persistent. Most tellingly, they’re scared. They know Ann Wagner is a flawed candidate who has trouble raising money and making her case to voters. And they saw the latest poll in this race putting us within one point of ousting her for good.
So as of today, they have outspent us by $1,000,000 in the hopes of keeping Ann Wagner in power.
That’s right. $1,000,000. They’re running negative attack ads all over Missouri, and for folks just tuning into the race right now, they’re hearing her lies about me on TV non-stop.
I’ve said this before, but in any other scenario, we would have more than enough cash to get through the final three weeks of this race and win. But Ann Wagner’s wealth is a uniquely difficult challenge to overcome without a substantial fundraising boost to close the gap.
The silver lining in all this is that we have people-power on our side. While Ann Wagner wants to get sent back to Washington on a gilded platter, we’re working day in and day out making sure we win the honest way. That’s the type of representation Missouri deserves.
With just 3 weeks left before Election Day, everything we do is going to matter. Every door knock, every piece of literature we hand out, and every town hall and event we host is going to matter. Every extra minute of ad time on TV and on social media is going to matter. And none of this will be possible without raising every dollar we can right now.
If you can chip in $3, $10, or $21 today, I’d be incredibly grateful. After that, you can share this post, tell your friends and family about this race, and stay engaged without having to give another cent. Because this is the fight we’ve been wanting to wage for years, and we can’t let this opportunity to save Missouri go to waste. People power is all we have, and that’s the strongest force in the world to make a difference.
So enough talking. Let’s fight. Let’s win. Let’s work together.
Thank you.
— Fred Wellman
On Democracy with FPWellman Substack Community is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.