How it all started . . .

We’re Sujata Raman and Sharon Trumpy—two engaged Michigan citizens turned political consultants who got our start supporting grassroots candidates for local offices. We met in 2019 at a school board meeting where we were both advocating for more inclusive policies for Black and brown students. Our shared passion led us to the GLPA fellowship and the Vote Run Lead Action program, where we were trained in campaign management and organizing.

Since 2022, we’ve helped local candidates win seats on school boards, city councils, and county commissions—races that often go unnoticed, but matter immensely. In the 2024 cycle, we supported 14 local candidates. Ten of them won. They are now on the front lines of democracy—protecting our children, advancing equity, and upholding our democratic values.

But here's the truth: many of the best local candidates don’t have access to professional campaign support. They’re first-timers, passionate and capable—but without the funds to hire experienced help, they often lose. That’s not just a loss for the community—it’s a loss for our future leadership pipeline.

That’s why we started The Big Local PAC. On a cool fall afternoon, we were on a walk, talking about our work and the barriers facing local candidates. We wanted to find a way to expand our model so that more candidates across Michigan could get high-quality support from trained campaign staff. By the end of that walk, we had the beginnings of our plan: a PAC that raises money to pay trained campaign staff, by way of in-kind services to down-ballot candidates. It’s our way of building a stronger, more representative democracy from the ground up and it’s now a reality thanks to The Big Local PAC.

But we need your help.

We don't need to wait until 2026 or 2028 to make a difference. We have great candidates seeking our help right now -- people who are stepping up because they see that they can make a difference in their own community. With your donation, we can help these candidates run and win. These can be the voices speaking up on library boards to protect the freedom to read, advocating on school boards to ensure that all of our students are treated with dignity, and bringing true representation to our city councils and commissions.