What do you get when the president pardons a racist? A potential U.S. senator.

Former Sheriff Joe Arpaio is taking advantage of his Aug. 25 pardon by President Donald Trump to run for U.S. Senate in Arizona, which he announced in a Jan. 9 speech. Arpaio was convicted of criminal contempt July 31, 2017, for violating a court order that prohibited him from continuing his crusade of racially profiling Latinos and targeting undocumented immigrants. 

Less than a month later, Trump ignored the egregious acts Arpaio committed and pardoned him before the latter began serving his deserved jail time. 

Arpaio’s conviction was the closest those subjected to his cruelty would have gotten to justice. As a sheriff for more than 20 years, Arpaio caused great suffering to inmates in Maricopa County, Arizona. His management of the infamous Tent City jail epitomized the evils of the criminal justice system. Arpaio prided himself in humiliating inmates by forcing them to wear pink underwear and subjecting them to living in sweltering outdoor tents in the Arizona desert.

Many are already aware of the long-term effects of Trump’s presidency, but Arpaio’s Senate campaign is one of the more insidious results of emboldening reactionary figures. If Trump had not pardoned Arpaio, he would be in prison instead of running for Senate, where he could permanently affect politics with legislation. Arpaio would have the ultimate platform to continue his historic agenda of targeting marginalized groups.

In this political climate, there is no room for moderate ideology in Congress. Trump’s presence in the White House will surely embolden more like Arpaio, who revel in their own racism and bigotry, to run for office.

If conservatives can usher far-right politics into Congress, progressives should continue to rally together to combat their ideology. In the local and state elections held throughout the country last year, the public saw a glimpse into the resistance against radical conservatism with the elections of Virginia’s Danica Roem or Alabama’s Doug Jones. But it is not enough to simply turn states blue.

The Democratic Party must reflect the interests of its constituents and not simply rely on disdain toward Trump to win votes. Since the 2016 election season, many have become frustrated with the party’s more moderate stances after Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders energized young progressives with his campaign. However, some have still fallen into the “horseshoe theory,” believing that far-left progressives are a similar danger to far-right conservatives.

Wanting accessible healthcare, protections for marginalized groups and an end to the country’s drastic income inequality is not on par with conservative policies like Trump’s Islamophobic travel ban or the recent tax reform bill that poses a danger to low-income people.

In the age of Trump, progressives should not have to settle for moderate policies just to ensure Democrats are elected, and some who have confirmed their place on the ballot realize that. Former soldier and transgender activist Chelsea Manning, whose 35-year sentence for releasing confidential documents was commuted by former President Barack Obama after seven years, confirmed her run for Senate in Maryland Jan. 14.

Manning risked her own freedom to leak documents showing the indiscriminate killing of civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan by the U.S. military. She is a symbol of the passion for change and accountability that progressives should embrace to resist the likes of Arpaio.

It is easy to be happy with any politician even slightly better than Trump, but our commitment to causes should not be clouded by desperation. Shake the system; don’t settle for it.