Growing up in a family of mostly Democrats, I guess you can say I was destined to become one.  However, my upbringing is not the main reason I became a Democrat.  For the past seven years, I have seen first-hand how Republican politicians have ruined our wonderful country and have given it a bad name.  I have volunteered in soup kitchens and food banks where people can't afford to buy food for their families.  I have heard victims of Hurricane Katrina talk about how the government ignored them after they lost their homes and their possessions.  I have seen my college classmates struggling to pay their tuition and having to balance their time between work and class.  I even had a roommate who had to move out of our dorm, because she couldn't afford the housing payments.  It makes me both frustrated and sad to see so many people suffer, because the Republican administration won't do anything to help them; instead, they only care about the rich and big corporations, and not the average American citizen who can't afford food or gas or their home mortgage.

I also resent the Republican policies that have affected me personally.  This past year since I graduated college, I struggled to find a job and have had to live at home since I can't afford to have my own place.  My health provider, Kaiser Permanente, denied me twice for insurance coverage, even though I'm in excellent health.  Something needs to be done, and I believe Democrats are the ones who can change things.

Right now, we live in very troubled times, and if we Democrats can stay united, we can take action and make America the great country it once was.  If we don't take action, then who will?  Surely not the Republicans!  That is why I'm a part of the California Democratic Party, and why I'm proud to be a Democrat.  I know we can accomplish great things and clean up the mess that the Bush admistration has made the past seven years.  Our country can't afford to keep going in the direction that it is, and the Democrats have the power to move it in the right direction.

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Dana Tucker is 24 years old and has lived in the Sacramento area most of her life.  She attended college at Sonoma State University, where she got her BA in American Multicultural Studies last year.  Aside from being an intern at the California Democratic Party, she has worked with autistic children and currently works with a young autistic woman.