Summary

In this episode of The Zekely Podcast, host Zeke interviews Pennsylvania State House candidate Sara Agerton about her motivations, policy positions, and why she represents the Democratic Party. They discuss the importance of civic engagement, healthcare, education, and voting rights, highlighting Sara's grit and dedication to public service.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Sara Agerton

01:56 Your Why

03:20 Run

06:52 Family

08:32 Wage

11:14 Democrat

12:47 Children's Literacy

13:47 Spicy Food

15:12 Feel the Burn

16:42 Foster Care

18:47 Health is Wealth

21:14 Postpartum

23:13 Counting Ballots

24:36 Assertive

25:25 Bullshit

27:53 Disaffected

29:29 Hope

30:53 Future

31:49 Wrap Up

Sara Agerton: https://www.saraagerton.com/

Full Video Episode Available On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheZekelyPodcast

Short Clips Can Be Found On TikTok: @drzeketayler/@thezekelypodcast and Instagram: @thezekelypodcast

www.thezekelypodcast.com

Hello, I'm Zeke, and welcome to The Zekely Podcast. Let's talk, Pennsylvania. The guest I have today lives in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and has been an indefatigable presence within the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. She's a social worker, healthcare administrator, and now she's running to flip a state house seat blue this year. Thank you so much for being here, Sara Agerton

I’m Zeke, a doctor, a Pennsylvanian and unapologetic supporter of Democratic values. You might have seen me on social media working my ass off for Democrats and meeting some pretty amazing people along the way - like President Barack Obama and Governor Josh Shapiro.

For years, I’ve knocked thousands of doors all over Pennsylvania and poured my heart and soul into supporting candidates and causes that make a difference—from local school board races to national elections. The personal is political, and I take every election in Pennsylvania personally.

Where the mainstream media has failed you, I will give you truth and independence. You’ll hear from Democratic leaders, candidates, and change-makers who are working to improve the health of the Commonwealth, and it won’t be boring as hell.

No matter where you are, I’ll meet you with hope and a plan to make your community better one day at a time. Welcome to the Zekely Podcast. Let’s talk Pennsylvania.

Hi, thanks for having me.

Absolutely, Sara. I make no secret of this. I love social workers. Social workers are amazing people. I work with them every day in the hospital and I just could not do my job without them. So I think it's amazing that you are a social worker and that you're running for State House.

Thank you. I love being a social worker and I also love working with the doctors and the hospitals in different settings. I think we make great partners in making sure that people's lives get a little bit better.

Absolutely. I mean, look, we can't do this by ourselves. I I know that, you know, doctors are seen as the leaders of the team, but there are so many different parts to the team. So I know you're a great person out of the gate and we're gonna learn all about you, play some games and have some fun. Are you ready?

All right, I'm ready.

All right, Sara, this is your third time running for the PA State House, so I have to know what is your why?

So my why is I'm not gonna give up.

third times my charm. I'm gonna take it. I think that for me, knowing all of the stuff that we can do, adding to that majority in Harrisburg, but also looking towards the future and knowing that.

The eighty eighth is a key district of being able to maintain that majority for years to come. So my why has grown stronger election after election. My daughter's twenty years old now and we have to make the state a little bit better for her because I need her to move out. She just recently moved back in. ⁓ so that may be my secret why now.

my gosh.

Understood. I I'm I am not an empty nester yet. I still my my oldest is about to go to college, not this year, but next year. So yeah, we're we're always looking for our kids to move on to the next step in a healthy fashion. ⁓ but yeah, look, running for office is not a small endeavor. And you know, it all doesn't always work out the first or second time. But this this I feel like is going to be a big year for Democrats.

Not because Democrats all of a sudden got their messaging right. It's because, you know, we had to be in some pain, unfortunately. I I don't like the fact that we have to be in so much pain in Pennsylvania, ⁓ but here we are, right? And maybe that pain is allowing people to see clearer. And I hope that people in your district will see that you're the type of state rep that they need to represent them in Harrisburg.

Well, Sara, we're gonna play our first game called Run Like Hell. Okay. And I read a lot of history books, and there was a quote that someone talked about when you run for office and you decide to do it, you put the bit in your mouth and you run like hell. And that and that's what you have to do. You have to run through the finish line. So I'm gonna guess some things about you during the last three years, and you're gonna tell me if I'm right or wrong. Okay. So I'm gonna guess how many phone calls you have made.

Since you started running for the state house. Okay. This this is my guess.

I'm gonna say forty thousand. You think you made about forty thousand phone calls in the last three years?

I think I've probably made more than 40,000 phone calls. I I've made so many phone calls that my phone company has labeled me a spammer and I've had to get another line.

my God, that's cr I've never heard of that. That's insane. I mean, I've done a lot of phone banking over the years for Democrats, but I've never heard of having to change your line. Well, yeah, I mean, that's what it takes. You have to you're constantly on the phone asking for donations and interfacing with members of the party. So I I believe that. All right, I'm gonna guess how many fundraisers that you have attended since you started first running for the state house. Now I just mean yours for you. Okay. I'm gonna guess fifty. Is that is that too much, too little, about right?

About right.

50 fundraisers. It's crazy how much money you have to raise. And in your district, it's a flippable seat. And so you're looking probably you're going to crest a million dollars, I'm assuming, for this particular race, which I look, nobody's happy about. It's not something that's not like a point of pride, right? That we have to raise a million dollars to run for political office. But this is the state of play, right? That these are the rules that conservatives have set up for us, and we're not gonna, you know, stay in the trenches. We're gonna get up, we're gonna fight. So

Thank you for doing all the fundraising. They're exhausting. I've have had a couple. so thank you for that. All right, here's a two more. How many doors have you knocked since you first started running for State House? I'm gonna guess twenty thousand. Twenty thousand doors.

I'm gonna say it's closer to twenty two thousand.

⁓ wow.

Yeah. I'm I'm pretty competitive on the doors. ⁓ I do like to leave the knock. ⁓ so I will tell you last election season I lost two gene sizes

you know, you're exercising, you're out there sweating, and I said by the end of the campaign I'm gonna need a budget for jeans

Yeah, that's crazy. I mean, d have you knocked so many doors that people just know who you are now? Like when when you've when you've seen them three, four times at the doors, like, Sara, hey, thanks for coming by. I mean, is that is it like that now in your district?

It it is. Sometimes I remember their dog's names. ⁓ there's a family that has a potbelly pig. So I'm like getting into the routine, going back and seeing a lot of the same people over and over again. And it's it's nice, you know, we have good conversations that travel from years to years now.

I hope that in the near future you're gonna be knocking the doors as a state rep and introducing yourself in that fashion. All right, here's my last guess. So you just talked about jeans. Okay, I'm gonna guess how many pairs of walking shoes you've gone through since you started running for State House three years ago. I'm gonna guess twelve pairs of walking shoes.

Probably about a dozen. I think you're you're right on

Yeah, about a dozen.

That's I mean, every once in a while I will see people running for a state rep or state senate or even Congress, and they'll post pictures of their worn out shoes on social media. Because

you have to meet people where they are. And sometimes it's social media and sometimes it's making phone calls, but a lot of times you have to get them at the doors and have that face-to-face conversation and you burn through the shoes. So I appreciate the hustle and the grit.

And the determination that you continue to have for this race and god damn it, I want this to be your year, Sara.

me too.

Sara, your dad was a welder who worked his way up without a college degree, and your mother stayed at home to help care for you. ⁓ so how did your family dynamics shape your worldview as you got older?

So it's interesting, my family was always a family of service. So I was raised that my mom cooked for all the elderly people at the church. We always were visiting shut-ins at you know our neighbors. So it was a very great upbringing. My dad would mow the lawns of people, he would go out and shovel. He was known for being able to repair every snowmobile, every snowblower, every lawn mower. So people just came to our house. It was a lot of community.

⁓ and I loved it. You know, we would work at the food bank. There there wasn't a month that went by that we didn't do service for somebody. ⁓ it was nice to watch my dad work really hard. ⁓ and it was during a time where you didn't have to have a college degree, right? So he was able to work his way up, he could support our family, he had good insurance, he started out in the union and then moved his way through management.

Now we don't always agree politically. ⁓ and my parents will say, How did you get this way? And I'll say, But you taught me to be this way. You taught me to be caring, you taught me to be giving.

and I'm proud of all of that that we did. So I think that really got me on that

Well, I'm really happy that they instilled those values within you as you were growing up and you saw their hard work and the care and love, not just for yourself, but for your community. And being ⁓ a representative for your district is about giving back to your community, especially your time. Not just listening to constituents, but your time, your energy in passing laws that will make their lives easier. So it's it's great. I love hearing about background stories because I think a lot of this really does start in the

Sara, the current Republican state rep serving in your district voted no twice to increase the minimum wage in Pennsylvania. How do you feel about that, Sara?

I feel that's really out of touch. You know, if we want people to have a better quality of life, we have to start with the minimum wage. Fifteen dollars an hour is not even enough. but we start there and we need to invest in our people. We need to invest in jobs, affordability. It is really tough for people out there. And I know that when I started off in the healthcare administration, I was always fighting for a higher wage for our CNAs.

It was amazing to me that a CNA could make more money working at sheets or at rudders rather than doing the care that we need. So it starts with minimum wage and then we just work upwards to make sure that people can afford,

know, a great quality of life, make sure that they can afford their health insurance, make sure that they can afford their rents. ⁓ $15 an hour is is out of touch if you're voting no.

I don't know. I mean, there are so many excuses people make to not raise the minimum wage. It's gonna, you know, hurt industry and rich people are going to leave and all it's which is all bullshit, you know, because you don't see all the states surrounding Pennsylvania, you know, crashing and burning, right? They've all raised their minimum wage and they're all fine. In fact, they're doing better. And people who live on the border of Pennsylvania, they're driving across the bridge to go work in New Jersey or Delaware and then coming back, right? Because they pay better wages there. So I I'm glad that.

When you're state rep, you would vote to raise a minimum.

tell you a story. I have a staff member who went to Comic Con.

she said, Hey Sara, I need to have off on Friday and Monday because I just have so much fun. I need to take off. And I said, No problem. You have PTO, enjoy your time. She goes, Well actually I'm gonna work Comic Con because they pay minimum wage. Do you know how much Washington DC pays for minimum wage? And so we had this great conversation that in Pennsylvania who she's voting for

does not vote to increase our minimum wage. And it was that conversation and that aha moment for her that she didn't realize that who she was voting for stops that in Pennsylvania. And she couldn't believe it and I said even West Virginia has a higher win ⁓ minimum wage than us.

Uh-huh.

It it was an aha moment.

⁓ it's

yeah, we need to have more of those aha moments and and I'm glad that they are occurring. They need to occur more often. But again, a lot of times it isn't until it influences your own life that you actually realize, my God, I can't believe these people have that kind of power. And I'm glad with your power you will do the right thing.

Hey, thank you so much for listening to this episode of The Zekely Podcast. And if you're enjoying yourself, please take a moment to rate my Podcast. Five stars would be great and leave a comment as well. And if you're watching this on YouTube, please hit follow. OK, back to the show.

Sara, why are you a Democrat? And why do you choose to represent the Democratic Party?

I think because it's so closely aligned with my values. I believe in being able to support people, having programs that make common sense, you know, protecting women's right to vote, making sure that we're fighting racism, bigotry within our own systems.

funding those programs, like making sure that people have healthcare, accessible and affordable, making sure that we're doing environmental protections.

When I first started running for office, I never thought I would even have to talk about a woman's right to choose.

We need Democrats to hold strong to those values to fight back and to make it an even playing field for everybody.

I mean, inject it straight into my veins, Sara. I I completely agree with you. I I think the biggest lie that Republican politicians have successfully

told people to get them to believe is that government can't help them. You know, th they have no problem making the government work for billionaires. They have no problem, you know, cutting all the red tape and giving them huge, huge tax breaks and everything. But when it comes to the average person in America, they've somehow convinced them that government can't work for them.

And then Republican politicians break government to prove that it doesn't work. But we know as Democrats that when done correctly, government can help the most amount of people. So I'm completely on board with you. I am very much in love with the Democratic platform. ⁓ I've read it, you know, front to back. It's 91 pages. It's online. It's free for anyone who wants to read it. That is the American dream. And so I'm glad that you represent it.

Sara, the current Republican state rep serving in your district voted no to establish a children's literacy program in Pennsylvania. Why the hell would you vote no on that?

Children need a level playing field and literacy programs help establish a level playing field. So I I never understand these no votes. You know, I want our education system to be equal to every kid, regardless of zip code. I may represent really strong school districts.

But just across the river, I know that kids struggle to get textbooks. They don't have air conditioning. they're hungry, they don't have good

programs during the summer that give them free lunch. We need to invest in our kids. If we want our communities to be stronger and to thrive, it starts with education.

I'm not surprised that the current state rep voted no. But again, this is not a one off. This is the Republican platform. Ignorance and maintaining that ignorance is the Republican platform, and the democratic platform is knowledge.

and getting that American dream.

Sara, I understand you enjoy spicy foods. Correct. Now how spice how spicy are we talking here?

Mm-hmm. Correct.

I love spicy. If it makes me sweat, that's great.

yeah.

my god, that is

really hot. I am like the weakest person when it comes to spice. I would like a little bit of a twinge. But anything further like I can't the fr the red hots, you know, that you get on cheesesteaks or whatever, like I'll be crying. I can't do it. I just have a very weak palate when it comes to spicy food.

I have a very good friend who has a small restaurant and he does hot sauces. So I will eat them. He made a recommendation

when I went to Nashville last year to eat a particular Nashville hot sandwich. It was so hot, the only time I was not able to eat something, it made me sweat when I opened the box.

Really.

Do you feel it later? I mean like, you know, later later. 'Cause I'll tell you what, if I eat something too spicy, it's i I get the spicy poops. I'm just saying. And I know that

No, I I don't get the spicy poops.

must have like an iron stomach. I mean, is that's crazy. I just I literally can't handle spicy food.

Well, I think it was so my mom was an excellent cook, but a lot of her cooking was very plain, like Pennsylvania Dutch. So it was salt and butter.

we never had spicy food. So after college, I just went crazy and now I haven't stopped.

I'm always impressed by people who can handle the spiciness because I it's just not I can't tread there, ⁓ unfortunately or fortunately for me.

But we're gonna play a game called Feel the Burn. Okay. So you've obviously heard of the Scoville heat units, correct? A SHUs. So bell peppers zero Scoville units.

Mm-hmm. Correct.

⁓ jalapeno peppers, 2,500 to 8,000, cayenne peppers, 30 to 50,000, all the way up to ghost peppers or Carolina Reapers. That's like over a million Scoville heat units.

you'd have to put me in the hospital, I'm pretty sure, if I went anything over bell

But I wanted to know what you would eat.

In the following scenarios. Okay. And I feel like based on what you've just told me, this might just be a chip shot for you. So would you eat a Carolina Reaper to establish a constitutional right to an abortion in Pennsylvania?

Absolutely, yes.

I would do it, but I think I would I would be in the emergency room. Like I just know dry heaving

okay, here's another one.

Would you eat a Carolina Reaper to legalize recreational marijuana in Pennsylvania?

Yeah, okay, I guess I would. Yeah.

Yeah. I think it's a good idea, right? Bring revenue into Pennsylvania.

No. No.

Absolutely.

I do it for a bush, I'll do it for marijuana, sure.

Yeah, I think it's a

here is ⁓ one more. Would you eat a Carolina Reaper to make sure that ghost guns and machine gun conversion devices aren't distributed in Pennsylvania?

Absolutely. I need to.

You need to, my God. Again, I feel like my stomach is just feeling this from talking about it. But again, these are all issues that your

Republican state rep would vote no on, by the way.

but I'm glad that you you would make a commitment to doing that as a state rep in Pennsylvania.

Sara, early in your career, you worked with kids in foster care. So how will those experiences help you as a state rep in Harrisburg?

You know, ⁓ watching our foster care system and listening to a lot of the trauma and the attachment disorders that kids developed from bouncing from home to home, not having permanency really has affected me. I I think about it a lot. I think about the kids that were food insecure that wanted to be reunited with their families, but they didn't have the resources to take them home.

how transient housing was a big issue for them.

how their parents were undereducated and couldn't secure jobs. And I think about it a lot. I have contacts with some of those kids as adults and know that their struggles, their struggles for access for mental health care, making sure that they dealt with some of the addiction issues that their families had that they developed over time. It it was life-changing and I was very frustrated with the system. You know, I think children and youth trying to help with permanency with kids, wonderful goals.

But we just didn't have enough resources for those families to be able to lift themselves up.

we cannot be the best country in the world and allow children to suffer

And have health issues that are not being addressed. Right? That's that should not be a thing. And we're just focusing on Pennsylvania. I would like to know that every child in Pennsylvania has access to a dentist when they need to, to mental health services when they need to. And I know, I know, that the only political party, a viable political party in Pennsylvania that can actually get those things done in Harrisburg is the Democratic Party. Because when you look at voting records, Republican politicians have no interest in expanding access to healthcare.

For children or for adults in Pennsylvania. And the big bullshit bill that Donald Trump signed it literally ripped away healthcare from hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians because they just can't afford it.

grateful that you were contributing to helping those children, but it just goes to show that you would have so much power as a state rep to influence their lives in a positive way because it's just the right thing to do.

we're going to play a game that kind of uncovers the seriousness of the situation we find ourselves with healthcare in Pennsylvania. It's called Health is Wealth, and it's a trivia game.

what percentage of adults in Pennsylvania do you think are in some form of medical debt?

Forty five percent.

Not that high, but still concerning. Fifteen to twenty two percent. Okay, that's that's one point three to two million Pennsylvanians ⁓ are in some form of medical debt. And I it hurts me very deeply as a doctor every single time I see a GoFundMe campaign

to pay for medical bills. Like it's just

There should be zero percent of Pennsylvanians who have medical debt. All right, here's another one. What percentage of adults in Pennsylvania have had to skip or ration their medications because of cost?

Probably twenty five percent.

Yep, about twenty-five percent. That's three point three million Pennsylvanians who had to skip or ration their medications. Again, that's just terrible.

healthcare is a is a human right. It just is. And I I will argue that to to the end for anyone who wants to come at me with that. Healthcare is a human right.

Here's the last one. What percentage of adults in Pennsylvania have no health insurance at all?

that's probably changed over the last couple of months. I'm gonna go

with twenty percent.

Not that high, but still concerning. About seven to ten percent. So that's eight hundred thousand to one yeah, eight hundred thousand to one million people, which has been made worse by the big bullshit bill for sure. ⁓ by people just can't afford to to buy health insurance.

Yeah. That's better.

And in Harrisburg, you will have the ability to address all these different things. And I don't want to live in a state where we have hundreds of thousands of people. I mean, I obviously will live here, but I mean, emotionally, right? Viscerally, I I don't like living in a place where we have people suffering. We have people who don't have access to medications, don't have access to healthcare. And I know what the end game is going to be. I know what the result is going to be. We're going to have people who are sick, more people dying.

More people not achieving the American dream. And we can always do better. And and it starts with electing people like you to go to Harrisburg and demand.

Wow, you're still listening. Thank you so much. I want to make sure as many people in Pennsylvania as possible get to experience The Zekely Podcast. So to help spread the word, please take a moment to rate my podcast. Five stars would be great. Leave a comment as well. And if you're watching this on YouTube, please hit follow. Enjoy the rest of the show.

Sara, the current Republican state rep serving in your district voted no to establish a program that would send new parents baby care items like diapers and onesies and postpartum essentials, including pads and ice packs in Pennsylvania. Why would you vote no for that?

Again, I just don't understand. You know, becoming a new parent is so overwhelming. And to be able to give someone just something that will help them, you know, diapers are expensive. onsies are expensive. Ice pack, taking care of too many women return to work too early and aren't caring for themselves after the birth of their children. We need to slow down and give people just a moment to breathe and to enjoy the new lives that they're bringing in and to take care of them.

Because taking care of parents who take care of children are gonna build healthier families.

Yeah, absolutely. Look, I firmly believe that a person, a human being, should decide when they want to have another human being and bring that person into the world. Absolutely full stop, okay? If your argument is, well, we're not having enough children, shouldn't you try and make it easier for people to have kids?

why not give people the resources to have more children? Child care options, giving them postpartum packages.

Making sure that they have maternity leave and paternity leave, making sure that they have access to healthcare, universal access to preschool and kindergarten all of those things, if you stack that, that's all dollars and cents. And so don't try to say that you are a party of life and like supporting families when you literally will not give people the minimum to start a family.

So I'm glad that you would at least do that mean this I mean, it's pathetic to say it's the minimum is to give a care package to a woman after she she has a kid. But like the fact that a Republican politician can't even give them that and then have the audacity to complain about people aren't having

I just I like the fact that you understand that concept and that you will vote to help people in Pennsylvania.

Sara, the current Republican state rep serving in your district voted no to allow election officials to begin counting mail and ballots seven days before an election in the state of Pennsylvania.

You and I both understand that the reason why they don't want that is because on election night, instead of knowing

who won any election, they can just say, my gosh, why all of a sudden are the mail and ballots causing the election to start to change, right?

suppression is real. And, you know, making people doubt the results of the election is real. ⁓ so if we can cause any kind of delay, it makes our elections look chaotic. And the reality is is that

Yeah.

ballots before shouldn't be a barrier. It would make it easier on election night for everyone. And

you know, I I understand the strategy.

I I don't understand ⁓ why we want to

a false narrative about voter integrity in our elections. I mean there there's very little fraud, we know that.

we know that mail-in ballots work, you know. It I you know, and I use I use doctors as a good example. You know, I've talked to a lot of people, surgeons in particular, say.

You know, it was a barrier to vote. I love my mail in ballot. So I think that, you know, this whole misnomer that people are abusing it, the reality is it just makes elections easier and we should want people to vote and be engaged, not stop.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

Sara, to some,

think that there is this stupid narrative, and I hate it, that Democrats don't have a spine, that we don't stand up for the right things, but clearly you know how to do that.

I always feel good when when you're you're talking truth to power. ⁓ I don't back down.

I I think it's an older oldest daughter trait, right? So I'm gonna argue no matter what it is. but I think that anytime you can point out when something is not correct and hasn't been done ⁓ with the right intentions, it it's a good feeling.

It's a good feeling for me to know that there are Democrats out there who represent democratic values and aren't ashamed to voice them when they hear something is wrong.

So we're gonna play a game called bullshit, okay? So if I say something that you don't agree with, I want to hear a full throated, proud bullshit that follows, okay?

women don't deserve paid time off after giving birth to a child in Pennsylvania.

Волосша.

Bullshit, right? Yeah, it's ridiculous. And I know that if we get the trifecta, we will pass

maternal leave in this in in the commouth of Pennsylvania. And I know that you will be a part of that.

Absolutely.

More state tax dollars should go to charter schools than fully funding public schools. Right? It's bull it's bullshit, right? And Republican politicians are constantly eroding funding for our public schools, funneling it to private charter schools because of as as regulated as we try to make them, they're still very unregulated. A lot of corruption. And we need more money to be flowing to public schools, right? I mean, our own state Supreme Court ruled it was unconstitutional the way that they were.

Bonche. Conchete.

not funded. So I'm glad that you would vote to keep funding our public schools. All right, I have a couple more. LGBTQ plus people don't deserve to have public accommodations or non-discrimination in housing in Pennsylvania.

Bullshit.

It is crazy that in 2026, ⁓ there are people living in the Commonwealth who do not have guaranteed access to public accommodations and non-discrimination and housing in Pennsylvania everywhere.

A landlord can evict someone in the LGBT community legally.

in the Commonwealth because we do not have protections ⁓ in you know enshrined in our constitution. And I'm glad that you would vote to protect

All right, here's the last one. People who experience sexual abuse as a child don't deserve justice after a certain period of time passes.

Bullshit.

Josh Shapiro, Governor Josh Shapiro, has tried, has literally, I've seen him beg,

shit.

in Harrisburg to the Caucasus to pass a law to allow people who have experienced just that to get justice, no matter what time of life they're in, because people process trauma differently. And I'm not going to be the kind of person, certainly as a doctor and a human being, and you as a social worker to judge.

how they come out of that process, what fear factors might be there to speak their truth, what life experiences they have, they deserve justice. And right now, Republican politicians are are not they don't agree. They don't want to pass any laws to give justice to those victims. I agree it is bullshit, and I'm glad that you would vote to allow that justice to happen.

⁓ boom.

Sara, what would you say to someone who is

with democracy?

Yeah.

Get involved.

We we can't just complain. You have to be part of the solution. So for those folks that are disenfranchised, they have to be involved. Whether it's on their council or if it's being a leader at school, a volunteer, get involved in your community because change can happen, but it happens slowly and it has to be intentional. So I really want people to get involved.

Austin Davis said it very similarly to you that, you know, government works best when you're engaged, when you actually participate in the process. and that's that's kind of the beauty of democracy. And also what makes it hard, right? When people become apathetic and they decide not to get involved, you open a space for people who do not want it to work and who will ultimately get elected. There are going to be elections at the local, state, and national levels. And if you cede your power to someone else.

They're going to make decisions about how you how you live your life. And so I I completely agree with you. You have to get involved.

this is not the time or place to stand back. It's the time to dig in deeper. It's a time to get in the work, to extend your hand to your, your fellow Pennsylvanian and say, we've got this. We're going to stick together and move the ball forward.

Sara, what gives you hope?

watching all of my neighbors, all of my friends take to the street with a loud voice.

I think you said earlier, sometimes we have to feel the pain to make the change. And watching so many people take to the streets, go and use their voices in a positive way.

protect groups of people that maybe they hadn't thought needed protection. That gives me hope. Being involved gives me hope. ⁓ watching the older generation reach out to the younger generation at a protest and h exchange stories about, well, I was arrested in the seventies and this is what we're doing.

it is such a difference than it was a few years ago because we're bridging the age gap. We're getting younger folks involved with with

they're going to change the world. We're going to make it a little bit better, but this younger generation's going to come in and they're going to fix the things for us.

But we've got to give them, we've got to create the space for them to get there.

this young generation coming together with us, I think it is is hopeful for me.

Sara, my last question for you is what are your plans to get you through these next few years? How are you coping these days? Because it's been rough. It's been rough out here in America.

me every morning starts with my Pilates class. I go take an hour class, I relax, I meditate, I do something selfish for myself. It's my selfish era.

and even if it's an hour every day, that's what I need to be able to to refuel myself, to be able to get back. ⁓ but I I feel like what's gonna keep me going is just staying involved and staying engaged.

I don't like to be bored. I don't like to not have something to do. So finding that purpose and keeping that ball moving forward is so important. And that's that's what's gonna get me through this. It's gonna get me to that state house seat. It's gonna keep me there for years to come. but I I'm gonna stay involved and I'm gonna take care of myself so that I can take care of my neighbors.

Well, Sara Agerton running for State House in Pennsylvania. This is the part of the show where you come in nice and close and you turn up the volume and you listen,

Josh Shapiro won this district by seven points, and it is estimated we need between 2,500 and 3,000 votes to flip it blue and expand our PA house majority in the state house. Sara, what is your website?

It's Sara Agerton dot com. So S A R A A G E R T O N.

If you live in the following districts, okay? Hamden Township, Lower Allen Township, Mechanicsburg, New Cumberland, or Shiremanstown, you need to get up off your ass. Go to Sara's website and get engaged. Sign up to door knock, phone bank, postcard, make a donation. This is our time, Pennsylvania. Every election is the most important election. And I don't want to hear that your vote doesn't matter. You could literally be the vote

But I can't wait to call you on November 3rd and congratulate you because you sure as hell deserve it.

Well, thank you. I can't wait for that phone call.

Well, thank you so much for being here on The Zekely Podcast. Stay hopeful and get involved. And until next time, let's keep building a stronger Pennsylvania together.