Tesicca and Goliath

Tesicca and Goliath: After a run for office, a young leader continues to fight for representation while taking on some of society’s biggest challenges.

In the story of David and Goliath, David battles a giant with only a sling and five stones. He beats Goliath by relying on his unique strengths. We all know the moral of the story: don’t shy away from a hard battle, even if you are the underdog.

For Tesicca (Tes) Truong, this story hits close to home because that’s exactly how she saw her recent campaign for Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) in Vancouver-Langara, Canada. 

“I knew my campaign would be a David and Goliath-type battle,” Tes said. After all, this 26-year-old was runningagainst an established incumbent—a corporate lawyer who had run for leader of his party. 

For Tes, running for office was about more than winning. “I wanted to win and it would have been a privilege and pleasure to serve,” Tes said. “But my campaign was about including new people in politics, so that people who have been traditionally excluded from politics can see themselves represented on the ballot and in office. I want to encourage people who are not traditionally spoken for in politics to run.” 

The election was too close to call originally; the final results were not finalized until weeks later, when mail-in ballots had been counted. While she lost the election, Tes sees her campaign as a victory for her community. She won the highest number and greatest percentage of votes for her party in her district than ever before. But more importantly, she feels proud to have run “a people-powered, values-driven campaign.” 

Representation and participation are core values that drive Tes’s work. “I want to engage new immigrants, new Canadians, Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, 2SLGBTTQIA+ people, younger people. People who didn’t have a place or space to be heard before,” Tes said. 

She was inspired by the 2019 movie “Knock Down the House” and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), U.S. Representative for New York’s 14th congressional district. In the movie, then-candidate AOC said “hundreds of us need to run in order for one or two of us to get in”. This comment made Tes realize that it wasn’t just about her run for office. It is about collective action and moving the needle, inch by inch. 

“It gave me a sense of fearlessness,” Tes said. “Even if I run and don’t get in, this is worth it because it pushes others to run, too.” Since her campaign, Tes says that half a dozen people have told her they plan to run for office. And that “feels like a win collectively as a community.” 

The collective win for Tes is also about participation—and action—in the process. Tes quickly realized that while you can work hard to get your issues noticed, you always need someone on the inside to help advance your cause. 

“We were always going to other people to ask them to do the right thing—to fund us, to support us, to push our cause. Sometimes that would happen and sometimes not,” Tes said. “I realized we need champions on the inside to guide the process. The outcome doesn’t change unless the gatekeepers are willing to push the work forward.” 

Tes understood this even before her run for office. Shortly after university, she helped co-found a non-profit called CityHive, which is still active today. CityHive advocates for youth involvement in city planning and decision-making by holding “Think-and-Do Tanks” that bring young people, community members and decision-makers together to work on a common challenge and provide grant funding to help execute solutions. 

Tes has been involved with the Children & Nature Networks’s Natural Leaders program, which equips diverse young adults with leadership training and professional development, while fostering a love and appreciation for nature. As a facilitator for a Natural Leaders Legacy Camp training, Tes was brought in to discuss and think deeply about solving environmental challenges. She learned first-hand the value and power that comes with giving young, diverse voices the space to learn, reflect, contribute, and act on solving issues that affect them. 

“The issues that I care about always come back to my environmental roots. That’s where I first felt connected to a movement and felt empowered by the ripple effect of our work,” Tes said as she reflected on her experiences with the Natural Leaders program. “Like ecosystems, our work has to be deeply connected to each of us and one another.”

Regardless of Tes’ next step—whether as an elected official, a non-profit leader,  a community leader, or educator—she sees herself as being a decision-maker, an advocate, and a champion. Tes says she knows she can’t wait 10 or 20 years to act on climate change, affordable housing, systemic racism, or any of the other crises affecting today’s youth and communities. 

Tes plans to keep to tackling Goliath-sized challenges. “Climate change is a David and Goliath moment. The opioid crisis is a David and Goliath moment. The housing crisis is a David and Goliath moment,” she said. “We can’t shy away from these moments because they are hard.”

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