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Democrats typically have trouble recruiting candidates for Statehouse races, but now they're having trouble keeping up with all the people who want to run.

Candidates are already coming out of the woodwork across the country, thanks to a backlash against President Donald Trump and a newfound recognition on the left of the importance of state legislatures to counter GOP control in Washington, D.C.

The surge of potential candidates has been so unusual that, for the first time, the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee felt the need to coordinate its recruiting efforts with all the groups that work to find candidates.

On Tuesday afternoon, representatives from about 20 organizations, including labor unions and influential outside groups like Emily's List, gathered at the DLCC's headquarters in downtown Washington for the first "Combine" a reference to the NFL event where teams check out potential recruits.

Democratic officials have had to add extra candidate training sessions to keep up with demand and increase enrollment in existing ones. One major training group, Emerge America, reports an 87% surge in candidate applications over last year.

The women's group Emily's List says nearly 10,000 women have expressed interest in running for office since November, including for state legislative seats. Meanwhile, Run for Something, which is focused on recruiting millennials, says its heard the same from almost 8,000 young people.

The enthusiasm turned last month's special election to decide control of the Delaware State Senate into a national battle for Democrats. One thousand people signed up to volunteer while millions of dollars poured in from online donors. Democrat Stephanie Hansen, who ended up winning the race, thought she was being prank called when former Vice President Joe Biden rang to offer his support.

"Everything has changed," Jessica Post, the DLCC executive director, said in an interview in her office.

Things have been rough for Democrats at the state level. Republicans control more than two-thirds of partisan state legislative chambers 67 of the 98 total after picking up 27 chambers since 2008.

With 7,383 state legislative districts nationwide, there was lots of talk at the organizing meeting Tuesday of spreadsheets and databases.

Around the room, participants discussed how unusual it is for candidates to be coming to them, rather than the other way around.

"Literally, the day after the election, we saw a huge increase in the number of women who wanted to run for political office, and we've been extremely busy since then," said A'shanti Gholar, the political director of Emerge America.

Post is used to having to sell grassroots activists on why they should even care about state legislative races. But last week, she found herself being asked for selfies after a speech to local Democrats in St. Louis.

"It used to be an effort to persuade people to put their name on the ballot," Post said. "Now, the candidates are calling us up and they're saying I want to run. Point me in the right direction...They're looking at Trump and saying I want to do something."

RELATED: Democrats Beware: Sanders Movement Turns to Midterms

Clearly, Democrats have rediscovered the importance of Statehouses this year, after losing over 900 state legislative seats under President Barack Obama.

Obama has thrown his weight behind an effort, lead by former Attorney General Eric Holder, to win them back ahead of redistricting in 2020, when lawmakers will redraw congressional maps.

And the Democracy Alliance, a group of major liberal donors meeting later this week, has decided to make state campaigns a top priority.

When Amanda Litman, a former Hillary Clinton campaign aide, launched Run for Something on Inauguration Day, she was planning to spend a lot of her time hunting for potential candidates.

"We thought we would have to struggle to find 100 people who would want to run," she said in an interview.

More than 1,000 people signed up in the first week.

"Barack Obama inspired a generation of people to get into public service out of hope. Trump could inspire a generation of people out of fear. And that's horrible, but can also be valuable," Litman said, calling it a "Trump bump."

Of course, many of the people expressing interest in a run now will not follow through with it. Campaigning is much more difficult than attending a training session. And there's no guarantee that more candidates means more victories.

And Ellie Hockenbury, the spokesperson for the Republican Legislative Campaign Committee, said the GOP has already found strong candidates this year's races, though they're just getting started on next year's midterms.

"We are still in the early stages of identifying and recruiting state-level candidates for the cycle, as filing deadlines are still a ways away," she said in an email. "The level of GOP success in the states over the past eight years leaves us optimistic that it will be another good cycle for recruiting and supporting impressive candidates across the country."

The first test will be in Virginia, which is one of only two states to hold major elections this year (the other is New Jersey, where Democratic control is not much in danger).

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Thousands of Would-Be Democratic Candidates Flood States in Trump Backlash - NBCNews.com

The last decade has been rocky for Angela Brancato, who grew up in Chicago's Mount Greenwood neighborhood and then left with her fiance in 2007 for brighter job prospects in upstate New York and later North Carolina.

The prospects never materialized, and they returned in 2012 to Mount Greenwood, where she found part-time work at a neighborhood diner.

That's where she works today. She voted for Donald Trump. Two months after his inauguration, Brancato and other supporters in Chicago remain optimistic about his presidency.

"When (Barack) Obama ran, he ran on the idea of change," Brancato, 31, said on a recent morning before going to work. "The country certainly has changed in the last eight years, and it's not a change that I particularly care for."

Pockets of intense Trump support exist in the broad-shouldered city of deep blue Democrats, particularly in Brancato's Mount Greenwood on the Far Southwest Side, in Edison Park and Norwood Park on the city's Far Northwest Side and in sections of Sauganash/West Ridge on the Northwest Side neighborhoods with substantial populations of police and firefighters.

Trump won nearly 70 percent of the vote in three Mount Greenwood precincts and more than 50 percent in 15 other precincts in Chicago's 19th Ward, which includes the Beverly neighborhood. In five Edison Park and Norwood Park precincts, Trump gathered more than half the votes. He also got nearly 60 percent of the vote in three precincts in Sauganash/West Ridge.

Those Chicagoans who voted for the businessman say they did so to rev the economy, support law enforcement, shake up a stagnant political system, and check immigration and government growth. While Trump fumed over an investigation into his campaign's possible ties to Russian hackers and the Senate grilled his Supreme Court nominee, his Chicago supporters gave the new president incomplete ratings on his job performance.

Brancato said her vote came down to her economic distress and the Affordable Care Act, which became too costly for her to use. She said she and many others are fed up with politics as usual, that the education system is moving in the wrong direction and the country should be more conscientious on immigration.

"I voted for Trump because he's not really a Republican," said Brancato, who added that she voted for Barack Obama in 2008 and George W. Bush in 2004. She didn't vote in 2012. "I'm hoping and praying that he can somehow get these people who are so hopelessly block-headed to at least listen to each other."

'Dude, shut up'

Brancato is concerned, however, about Trump's unfounded and combative comments on voter fraud and surveillance on his phone, a continuation of her frustration with Trump's abrasive comments in the campaign.

"It would just be like, 'Dude, shut up,'" Brancato said. "'One of these days something's going to come flying out of your mouth and it's going to do irreparable damage.'"

She said Trump's allegations should be investigated fully and she remains concerned by indications that Russian hackers may have tried to influence the November election.

Down the street from Brancato, at United TV Service, owner Dave Benedict said he voted for Trump because he is taking "a businessman's approach to running the country." Like Brancato, he viewed Hillary Clinton as an extension of Obama's eight years as president, which Benedict viewed as a failure.

"He kind of has a trigger finger when it comes to his opinions," Benedict said of Trump. "He's not going to be politically correct. He's just going to tell you his opinion and that's the way it is."

Benedict, who said he voted for Mitt Romney in 2012 and John McCain in 2008, said it is too early to tell how effective a president Trump will be. Benedict said he would be concerned if proof emerged that Trump's campaign colluded with Russians to influence the 2016 election or if Trump's claim that Obama ordered surveillance on Trump's phone turns out to be false.

Former 19th Ward GOP Committeeman Steven Graves said it should come as no surprise that Trump did well in Mount Greenwood, "because this is a middle-class, hardworking neighborhood," where people are tired of "the same old same old," and believe Trump can deliver jobs, lower taxes, cut government, secure our borders and strengthen the military.

"I think they felt like they finally could hit back," Graves said. "I think his heart's in the right place and I think he's learning as he goes." But, Graves added, "when he says, 'Drain the swamp,' half the crowd is his crowd."

Trump's election came at a particularly volatile time in Mount Greenwood, where 90 percent of residents are white and many police officers reside in brick Georgians and trim ranches on narrow city lots. Three days before the election, police shot and killed Joshua Beal, 25, an African-American from Indianapolis, in Mount Greenwood.

Authorities have called the confrontation a road rage incident. The shooting, which remains under investigation, sparked protests that pitted police supporters against groups critical of the shooting.

Trump backers in law enforcement privately said they are aggravated their support is perceived as racist, when they maintain it is based on what they see as declining support from Obama and the likely continuation of that if Clinton had been elected.

Turmoil to empathy?

About 30 miles north of Mount Greenwood, in neighborhoods that include Edison Park and Norwood Park, Robert Athey said he voted for Trump as a way to curb a federal government that was overreaching. Athey, who served as the Midwest representative of the U.S. secretary of labor in 2002-09, also said the Affordable Care Act was unaffordable.

Athey, of Norwood Park, also said that Obama and Clinton, as secretary of state, mishandled the U.S. response to Syria's civil war and Clinton in particular showed incompetence in the 2012 terrorist attack on U.S. government buildings in Benghazi, Libya, that left four Americans dead.

About Trump's performance, Athey said the Democrats have instituted "a war" against the president since his election. They can "attack the personality and avoid the policy," he added. It is too early to say much about the job Trump has done in office, he said.

But Athey acknowledged that Trump has hurt himself with Twitter posts and unfounded comments. His best explanation for the content of Trump's more controversial statements is that the administration is "so overwhelmed by the attacks that ... he gets ahead of himself on issues that don't matter."

"I kind of wish he wouldn't do it," Athey said. "It kind of dilutes his message and the message of the people who work for him."

He and other Trump supporters said backers of the new president tend to keep a low profile largely because, as Athey said, "the liberal media made Trump out to be the most horrible person in the world and people are reluctant to express their support."

Suzzanne Monk, who with her husband, Alexander Duvel, owns Worlds of Music Chicago in the North Center neighborhood, said their support for Trump led to bullying that is prompting them to close the musical instrument store by the end of April, convert it to an online business and leave Chicago.

In a letter she sent to several media outlets, Monk wrote that "because we support Trump, we no longer feel proud, or safe, being in this city." Duvel filed a police report in August citing harassing texts and phone calls.

Monk also contends the main reason for closing the store is that prospective customers have been intimidated "merely for associating with us."

Those whom Monk specified as harassing and intimidating the couple deny the claim. They say Monk and Duvel brought the problems on themselves for aggressive and offensive social media commentary and videos attacking liberals.

Benedict, the electronics repair shop owner in Mount Greenwood, said he has not been harassed or lost business for supporting Trump. Brancato said she also has not been harassed, although her fiance, who works in a more politically liberal neighborhood of Chicago, keeps quiet about his Trump support.

Edison Park Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Melissa McIntyre said business owners avoid political conversations with customers out of a sense of professional protocol, and that it was unlikely any would suffer negative consequences if they publicly declared their support for Trump.

On the other hand, she said, some residents were angry with a local restaurant that participated in A Day Without Immigrants on Feb. 16 by closing for the day to demonstrate how important immigrants are to America's economy.

"People said they'd never go there again," McIntyre said.

Since Monk's story gained media attention on March 17, she said she has received an outpouring of support. Her "Save Music Store from Trump Haters" GoFundMe campaign, started in January, raised more than $17,000 as of Tuesday afternoon. Monk said about $9,000 has arrived since Saturday.

She acknowledged that unrest over the Trump presidency may have engaged people more in public affairs.

"I hope that can transform," Monk said, "and keep bringing the dialogue and bring America back together."

Chicago Tribune's Annie Sweeney contributed.

tgregory@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @tgregoryreports

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Pockets of strong Trump support in deep blue Democrat Chicago ... - Chicago Tribune

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) Aaron P. Bernstein/ZUMA

At the start of Monday's hearing on Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), the ranking Democrat on the House intelligence committee, laid out why the hearing was so important.

Schiff, a former federal prosecutor, offered a detailed timeline of Russia's role in the election during a 15-minute opening statement ahead of the committee's questioning of FBI Director James Comey and National Security Agency Director Mike Rogers. The American public will never know whether Russian meddling swung the election, Schiff said, but there are some things that are known that deserve further exploration.

"What was happening in July/August of last year? And were US persons involved?"

"We do know this: The months of July and August 2016 appear to have been pivotal," Schiff said. "It was at this time that the Russians began using the information they had stolen to help Donald Trump and harm Hillary Clinton. And so the question is why? What was happening in July/August of last year? And were US persons involved?"

Schiff laid out details from the series of memos authored by a former Western intelligence operative detailing possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian intelligence. He highlighted the behavior of former Trump campaign national security adviser Carter Page, who reportedly traveled to Moscow on what Schiff described as a "trip approved by the Trump campaign" and met with the CEO of a Russian corporation who is reportedly a "former KGB agent and close friend" of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Schiff also pointed to allegations in the memos that the Trump campaign was offered documents damaging to Hillary Clinton in exchange for, as Schiff put it, "a Trump Administration policy that de-emphasizes Russia's invasion of Ukraine and instead focuses on NATO countries not paying their fair sharepolicies which, even as recently as the President's meeting last week with Angela Merkel, have now presciently come to pass."

Prior to the hearing, Trump tweeted that allegations that his campaign colluded with Russian officials are "FAKE NEWS" and that Democrats "made up and pushed the Russian story as an excuse for running a terrible campaign."

Schiff closed his statement by pointing out why the Congress must thoroughly investigate Russian interference in the election. "Only by understanding what the Russians did can we inoculate ourselves from the further Russian interference we know is coming," Schiff said. "Only then can we help protect our European allies who are, as we speak, enduring similar Russian interference in their own elections."

Read the full statement below:

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Here's the Democrats' Best Case for a Trump-Russia Investigation - Mother Jones

To tackle concerns aboutcollege affordability, a Democratic legislator is proposing to makepubliccolleges and universities tuition-free for all Californians,and wants to tax millionaires to do it.

The measure, which echoes calls for tuition-free college by former presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), is the latest in a flood of legislationthat's been introduced this year to address concerns about the rising costof attending college.

The state's 1960 Master Plan, which created a framework for higher education institutions, was meant to "make college affordable for everybody. That was going to be the California dream," Assemblywoman Susan Talamantes Eggman (D-Stockton), the proposal's author,said in an interview.

"Now we find ourselves in the position where that dream isnt being fulfilled," she said.

Eggman'sproposal would impose a 1%tax on incomes over $1 million to help pay for the approximate $2.2-billion price tag to cover tuition and fees for all in-state students in conjunction with existing aid.

"We know the very wealthy continue to control a huge amount of the states wealth, this countrys wealth, while the middle-class continues to get squeezed more and more," Eggman said.

New taxes generally face a steep climb in the Legislature, where a two-thirds vote is required for passage. But Eggman said her bill, AB 1356, would also be coupled with a constitutional amendment that would put the tax before voters for ultimate approval.

Doing so, she said, ensures "a greater buy-infrom the general public."

A recent survey by the Public Policy Institute of California found that 68% ofDemocrats, 20% ofRepublicansand 42% of independents support increased taxes to pay for higher education.

Eggman's tuition-free proposal takes a different approach from her colleagues, who unveiled a sweeping plan last week to make public colleges debt-free for nearly 400,000 students from families that make up to $150,000 per year. That measure aims to chip away at some of the associated costs of going to college, such as living expenses and textbooks.

Eggman said she envisions the two proposals complementing each other.

She also said she anticipates critiques her "clean sweep" plan to wipe tuition away for all Californians would benefit wealthy residents who don't need such assistance.

People may say "'millionaires kids might use it,'" Eggman said."Well, theyre paying for it, too."

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This California Democrat is proposing a tax on millionaires to make public colleges tuition-free for in-state students - Los Angeles Times

Welcome to Clout Street: Morning Spin, our weekday feature to catch you up with what's going on in government and politics from Chicago to Springfield. Subscribe here.

Topspin

Ald. Ameya Pawar, a Democratic candidate for governor, said hes willing to discuss term limits for state officialsbut doesnt think the debate is worth holding up a state budget.

Pawar limited himself as an alderman to two terms, and he's serving in his second now. In speaking on WGN-AM 720, when asked if he thought Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner had done anything correctly, Pawar voiced support for term limits for governor and legislative leaders.

But we need to also then discuss if we want term limits for rank-and-file legislators. Do we want powerful politicians that we elect or do we want powerful bureaucrats? Pawar asked.

Its not a panacea. Its certainly not a panacea that creates new jobs. Its a political move. Its a public policy change one thats worth debatebut certainly not one thats worth holding up a budget over, he said.

Rauner has made term limits on Illinois politicians among the issues he has viewed as a prerequisite for his support for raising taxes as part of resolving the states historic budget impasse.

The Northwest Side alderman has modeled his progressive agenda on Franklin D. Roosevelts Great Depression-era economic and social programs known as the New Deal.

Automation and trade have gutted lots of local economies, and we need to talk about that. And we cant let another generation of people wither on a vine and expect them to hear Democrats and expect them to vote for Democrats, Pawar said.

Its my job to go out and talk to everybody. Im going to go to every county in the state, all 102, and go have a conversation whether theyre red counties or blue counties, he said. I dont believe you write people off based on who they voted for in the last election. And as the leader for the entire state, you dont pit people against one another. You go and hear them out and make decisions to invest in communities and bring them together.

Pawar acknowledged the wealth of businessman Chris Kennedy, who has entered the race, and potential candidate J.B. Pritzker, who has launched an exploratory committee. But he said it was more important to have foot soldiers. The alderman said he plans on largely raising small donations while fielding volunteer supporters. He said he has volunteers committed in 61 counties across Illinois.

Pawar has raised $71,310 in his campaign fund for governor, including $40,300 deposited Friday, state campaign disclosure reports showed. (Rick Pearson)

What's on tap

*Mayor Rahm Emanuel's schedule wasn't available.

*Gov.Rauner is scheduled to appearat Atlas Tool Works in Lyons in the early afternoon and atthe Governor's Conference on Travel and Tourism in the evening.

*Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza willappear before the City Club of Chicago.

*Spring has sprung.

From the notebook

*Hoop dreams: The University of Illinois isnt in the big tourney, but it is part of the hoops field in the National Invitational Tournament.

The Fighting Illiniplay Monday night at home against the Boise State Broncos.

Of political note, the president of Boise State is Robert Kustra, a former state lawmaker and Illinois lieutenant governor underGov. Jim Edgar. Kustra, by the way, has a doctorate from the University of Illinois.

The Kustras will be cheering their team on from Idaho. (Rick Pearson)

*The Sunday Spin: On this week's show, Chicago Tribune political reporter Rick Pearson's guests were Mike Gelatkaof the Illinois Gaming Machine Operators Association, Democratic governor candidate Ald. Ameya Pawar, and Tribune reporter Hal Dardick.Listen to the full show here.

What we're writing

*State Sen. Daniel Biss expected to announceDemocratic governor bid Monday.

*Rauner asks state Supreme Court to get involved in fight with union.

*Emanuel challenges Trump budget proposalon its values, priorities.

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Morning Spin: Democrat who wants matchup with Rauner would ... - Chicago Tribune