It's election day.
Yeah, it's an off year and, yeah, these are small local elections, and yeah, you probably don't care much.
But these elections matter.
If you want to keep your democracy, keep your Republic, then every election matters. And these elections, right now, today, matter even more than the big national elections.
Right now, it's state and local politicians who are every single day, step by steps big and small, bit by bit, relentlessly advancing the fanatical agenda of absolutism. Look to Florida. Look to Texas. Look to all those places where a dogmatic ideologue in the Governor's office and zealots in the local legislatures have criminalized women's healthcare; taken away the right to vote from those they deem to be of the wrong race, wrong income bracket, wrong political party; imposed their miserable religious ideology in the classrooms and denied your children the opportunity to learn history, science, social systems and political ideas different from their own; and have not only refused to take steps to protect the general welfare during a pandemic, but deliberately and with malice aforethought made things worse in the guise of some idiotic idea of "freedom" and the mindless shallow nationalism of the Patriot.
But you can stop them.
Today is the day. If you want a better nation, be a better citizen.
Get after it.
How do you cast an informed vote when there is absolutely zero information about the candidates, their party affiliation, or their positions on anything?
ReplyDeleteUtah does not provide that information. The ballet refers us to a website where all you get is "I'm a parent. Vote for me."
Even if you are an Independent, check the endorsements of your local Democratic and Republican committees. Though it's not perfect, the contrast between the two will often give you more information to go on. Your local paper might also have more info; mine runs a pretty comprehensive, independent voter guide every election. You may also find ballotpedia.org helpful.
DeleteIf you have a local paper, they usually do at least one article on the local candidates. If you don't have a local paper, you are screwed in so many ways.
DeleteCheck their social media pages and see what kind of things they like, are reposting, etc. Will give you an idea of where they lean.
Deletethis site has a lot of info in local races as well as national. Good luck
Deletehttps://ballotpedia.org/Partisan_affiliations_of_registered_voters
That's one of many reasons I love voting in Washington. For every race, we get actual, non-partisan voter guides, in which all candidates have a chance to make their case. (It was kind of funny reading the one in support of Trump, a couple of years ago.) For other ballot measures, it's the same thing: Here's what the sides say in support or opposition to the measure. It's VERY helpful.
DeleteWe have found it useful to identify the right wing nut conservatives in the neighborhood. Check the signs they put up, and vote for the other candidate. Also, looking at what they say about themselves is useful. Nearly every wing nut conservative will use dog whistles of some sort in their campaign materials. This does mean following candidates year round, not just reading about the candidates the day before the election.
DeleteAlso League of Women Voters websites can be very helpful.
DeleteStart here:
Deletehttps://www.lwvutah.org/
My local city council election today is the same way. "I'm more awesome than the other candidates, pick me!" is not a qualification, but that's all I can find for any of them.
DeleteAnd be VERY careful about who you choose for your local school board. My local paper warned me about a coalition of anti-vax anti-mask moonbats trying to sneak in to ours.
Deletevote411.org has candidate statements and answers to supplied questions, right down to the smallest local contest (I should know, I'm running in one of them.) The League of Women Voters sponsors this.
DeleteAsk your questions on their social media pages. The way they respond will tell you a lot. A school board candidate in my town has become well known for her propensity to block and delete anyone who asks any question that doesn't basically ask if she'll be amazingly amazing or just really, super great on the board.
DeleteHere in Ohio we have some civic organizations - such as the Junior League, League of Women Voters, etc. - who survey the candidates and provide their responses to local media outlets. It leaves a lot to. be desired, but it's something.
DeleteIf you don't have that where you are, I have to wonder what it would take to implement it.
Unfortunately, that "of, by, and for" business is usually a DIY-mandate
Phone the campaign headquarters of each candidate and ask them about the official position of the candidate on each of YOUR issues.
DeleteLeague of Women Voters usually has good info. Here's the one for your state - https://www.lwvutah.org/. Know that if they don't have info, it's because the candidate refused to respond to their request for info.
DeleteThere is often some information available from the League of Women Voters. They depend on candidates to respond to am array of questions that are often current and locally important.
DeleteI have nothing but contempt for states that won't put out election information. My partner's current state of Oklahoma doesn't even notify the citizens if there's any sort of election coming up, never mind any information.
DeleteOregon, we get a voter pamphlet by mail, one way or another (this year stuffed in with the ballot as it's pretty thin, last year mailed separately.)
Almost seems like some places don't want too many informed voters, eh?
Thank you for the Vote411.org reference. I used local newspaper information. This would of also helped a lot.
DeleteSame in NC. I had to Google to even find out their party affiliation
Deletedoes the local newspaper or League of Women Voters have the info?
Deletedone and done
ReplyDeletefb does that to me as well. You never know if a comment or meme gets you kicked out. The state elections are very important, especially when they can make unreasonable laws about elections.
ReplyDeleteWe aren't having any elections in Oregon today -- but the states that are . . . well, to be honest, some of them scare me to death. I hope that the *rational* people will get out and vote like crazy, because we have a democracy to save.
ReplyDeleteWell, some parts of Oregon have an election today. I live in Washington County and had one referendum to allow the local fire and rescue to issue bonds. I returned my ballot. But the great thing about Oregon is you *know* if there's an election or not, because your ballot arrives in the mail!
DeleteOregon as well, with 2 measures on my ballot - one to re-up the levy for my fire district, and one to put limitations on short-term rentals. (The latter has drawn a lot of out-of-state money in opposition: my state Representative noted weeks ago that they'd spent three times or more than his 2020 campaign cost.)
DeleteEvery election, every time.
Voted on Friday. Mayor, council and 2 school items. Nothing is more important than local politics.
ReplyDelete"All politics is local." -Rep. Thomas P. "Tip" O'Neill, among others.
DeleteI live in ruby-red eastern Washington, where religious zealots are trying to take over our school boards, and a real estate PAC is trying to install their puppet on the city council in order to turn the shoreline of the Columbia river over to developers. I do care, and I vote---in every election, because every election has consequences that matter.
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry to hear eastern Washington (where I was born and raised) has turned so ruby red. The wheat farmers were known for being conservative, but the rest of the area was up for grabs. What about the cities/towns where colleges/universities are located? Have they also gone "ruby red"? What a pity!
DeleteFreckles
Virginia is the bell weather election to watch. Watch for cries of voter fraud, rigged, if the trumpanzy loses.
ReplyDeleteTOo late. The screaming from the seditionists has been loud and clear. Thatt is when you can hear it over the flood of Youngkins 30 second lies/obfuscation/misrepresentation spots.
DeleteUmmm. Cries of fraud/rigged/etc. in Virginia hit the national news on *Monday*, before the polls even opened. How do I know it hit the national news? I'm in Los Angeles, and it hit the evening news on one of our local (non-network) stations last night (11/1). If they're crying fraud before the polls even open, you know they've gotta be worried, and they're signaling to Bubba that he needs to go get his guns *right now* to prevent the "wrong" people from voting. Women in my family have been pollworkers for decades, and this sort of stuff terrifies me.
DeleteOver 80% of the votes in for Virginia. The Republican is ahead by 170,000 votes. This does not bode well.
DeleteVoted this a.m. No offices, just a city sales tax to fund street repairs (they need it badly). I'll save more on tires and struts/shock absorbers than I'll spend on the sales tax.
ReplyDeleteI was astonished to get a flyer from the state Republican party, simply to endorse a council candidate in a city of fewer than 41,000 residents. I voted, but it wasn't for their recommended guy. ...
ReplyDeleteThat's important information! I always look at what the Republicans send me, and vote for the other candidate.
DeleteI voted! There is an important school board election happening between incumbents who support masks for the kids and challengers who are only running on an anti mask platform. I hope enough pro mask people show up because I want competent people in charge of the school district.
ReplyDeleteSchool board elections are *super* important right now. A district near me got enough new members to fire their superintendent without cause, because she was upholding the state law on masking and vaccines for staff and teachers. Members of the public were appalled, but it was too late once they started paying attention. Another district banned "divisive, political" symbols, like BLM and LGBTQ+ flags, in classrooms. They are roundly booed at all away sports events. Good luck!
DeleteIn Washington we have a pretty comprehensive Voters pamphlet that gives pro and con with rebuttals on every issue and race entrants. I voted last month as soon as it became possible and there are collection boxes and free postage with our voting vetted by our registered name and address.
ReplyDeleteGoing this afternoon. The only thing on the ballot is an extension of the sales tax to fund schools, but that’s enough.
ReplyDeleteVote! ALWAYS vote. It's too important not to.
ReplyDeleteNo elections in my area of California today, but I did see a news item last night of an Orange County elementary school teacher that was filmed repeating misinformation about the election and Hunter Biden. Apparently these people exist in our education system, too...
ReplyDeleteWell, I mean really, what is there to argue here? You (hopefully) get the government you vote for. What gets me down is that each election cycle, for whatever position, promises and plans are made, only to be half assed implemented, not implemented at all, or too often destined to be reversed with the other party takes over. I've been listening to this stuff since Reagan and not a whole lost has improved, if anything, and many times, things are worse. As an example, Mr. Biden is now off at the climate change conference. More promises, more plans. This is the 26th conference. 26!! What is the debate here since 1995?? And the climate change plans hoped for in the Dems proposals could well be torpedoed by the Supreme Court. More lost time, more wasted effort, and nothing gets fixed. I'm not saying don't bother trying but man, it sure is disheartening after all these years and near impossible to believe that anything will ever change.
ReplyDeleteBut if we don’t keep trying, keep voting, the side that wants to keep the status quo WILL win. Every time, a few more people get the message. A few more vote. 2020 had record turnout. We need to spend the little time, or hours, it takes to vote, to get the chance to make it happen. If they had given up, Black people STILL would not be able to vote.
DeleteWe don't have any election in my part of California today, but I hope that the democrats in Virginia get out in force.
ReplyDeleteIt's tough Brian, it's real tough. But the information is out there. We can't rely on spoon fed bios regressed by the candidates either. We have to look at their public histories, voting records from past offices (if any), things that they have said and done. The information is out there and it can be damn hard to get to, but it's important we try to.
ReplyDeleteThen show up, hold our nose, and vote for the least worse candidate.
I investigate, yes investigate, everyone running for any office. City, county,state,federal, and particularly judges...every single one. The information is NOT easy to find, but that's the point. The evil doers want the worst to be hidden. I am not paranoid, but power brokers depend on people being either complacent or pissed off. I do not take my right to vote lightly nor do I take it for granted. I want a better nation Stonekettle and I will fight like hell to get that.
ReplyDeleteI spent a long time reading and searching about the people running for the school district. If they were concerned about CRT being taught in schools or stated that they wanted conservative values taught then the were automatically a no vote. I hope others bothered to vote.
ReplyDeleteLocal election in Eastern Washington state. I'm very glad that the local newspaper published an entire section of races and candidates, with interviews and even question and answer charts. Between that and the county issued voter's pamphlet, it made the choices VERY easy. It also provided some cross checking between the official campaign statements and what was provided by the media. (They matched.)
ReplyDeleteVoted in VA. The Trumpettes are trying hard to make inroads here and unless things go very different at poll closing than they have looked during the last few weeks, it's going to be a nail-biter.
ReplyDeleteNothing scheduled here in St. Louis (an island of sanity in the drooling madness that is Missouri) but if there were, we'd be there. We never miss an election, for all the good it has done us. People ignoring these local elections is what has led to fascists controlling local and state governments. And we can see where that is leading.
ReplyDeleteYou're so right -- it's absolutely vital that we vote in every election. Our democracy is at stake and losing right now.
ReplyDeleteNextdoor can sometimes be a bit of a cesspool, but I sometimes find it useful to see what people are talking about there with regards to local politics and candidates (even if it tips me off to run the other way). Not sure what the quality of Nextdoor in is other areas, but it's one of the few places to find hyperlocal discussion.
ReplyDeleteWe early voted Friday for mayor, city council, school board and most importantly of all Soil and Water District rep. That board has been dominated by the ranching and mining interests who want to pretty much give all our water to them. We have a free-flowing river and a huge wilderness area that can actually create jobs in the tourism industry, but all the current board wants to do is dam the river and use it for irrigation. Someone ran the actual numbers and found that the small amount of water that will be available would be the most expensive water in the country. VOTE! It's important.
ReplyDeleteI voted. I wonder if more than 13% of the people in my city will bother. That's about all who normally vote. It's ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteI voted straight democrats, when I could when there wasn't one running I wrote in my Son. NFW I'd ever vote for a republican for anything.
ReplyDeleteHere in Virginia, we had 1.1 million people vote early, so it will be interesting to see how the evening progresses. Apparently those votes can be legally tallied quickly once the polls closed @ 7 pm. It is now 7:43...
ReplyDeleteI voted. I even, probably stupidly, wrote my name in for the position of Judge of Election. I sure hope someone else gets written in, or I might be for it!
ReplyDeleteWhy am I worried about winning on a single vote written in? Well, there were no candidates for the job. At all. (Or for Inspector of Election, I might add.)
Wouldn't it be funny if they had to have a 10-way run-off because 9 other people voted for themselves? Oh, my.
Chief, don't know if "Laboratories of Authocracy: A Wake-Up Call From Behind the Lines," has come your way. By David Pepper, former state Democratic chairman of Ohio, and a good analysis of how the GOP built its power in statehouses, and thus nationally, after the 2011 gerrymander. Hope you'll read and recommend.
ReplyDeleteI voted, but our school board is about to be flipped by a slate running for anti-masks and that's all they really talked about. They are right wing jut job for certain. They have received money from the 1776 project and the Good Samaritan (I think that's what their called, they want to arm our teachers), and plenty of other unnamed funding from god knows where. They will push vouchers and charters and defend our amazing neighborhood schools. My kids are only in 3rd and 5th. Teachers are going to leave in droves for better jobs in other districts, there are plenty here. In all of Colorado I had to buy a house in Douglas County!
ReplyDeleteIn Virginia, the Trump ideologues took over the top three state government spots yesterday. The winners' campaigns were built in large part on attacking the non-existent teaching of critical race theory in the schools.
ReplyDeleteIf only Democrats were ask skilled with pushing the truth as Republicans are at pushing their lies
ReplyDelete