Week in Review 6/8/2018

As we inch towards the midterm elections in November, we cannot let early Democratic primary victories lull us into complacency. We still have a long way to go and still need to encourage more people to vote.

Primaries generally bring out the base, those voters who are more engaged and who are extremely partisan. Since primaries are not a contest between two candidates of different parties, the results are a more direct proxy for partisanship preference.

This year voter turnout has been higher than other midterm elections - certainly something that gives us hope. People are more engaged than ever before. Every aspect of their lives have been negatively impacted by the Trump administration. These voters understand that the only way to change policy is to vote for candidates who stand for their values.

Almost half of voters in a new poll say they want to elect congressional candidates in the midterms who will serve as a check to President Trump's power in Washington. But still, many choose to stay home, giving up their voice to others.

This week in Montana, a state that went for Trump by more than 55 points, the Democrats turned out in record numbers. It was the highest number of voters in a century. The Democratic turnout more than doubled in New Jersey; the same in Iowa. In California's 49th Congressional District, a district that has had GOP representative since 2000, the Democrats voted in higher numbers than the Republicans.

The 2016 election had the lowest voter participation in 20 years, according to USA TODAY, with only 55 percent of voting age citizens casting a ballot. The turnout was even lower among young Americans, only 50 percent of whom voted in 2016, according to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement.

Those that didn't vote are not immune to policies and court decisions that impact their health care, taxes, and safety. If we don't vote and if we don't encourage our friends and family to vote, then we all share in the responsibility of failed policies. Your vote is the only way to protect our democracy.
 

Elections matter. Elections have consequences.

 

source: The Hill