Your Money or Your Life
Dear Leading Ladies,
Some of us are scratching our heads and wondering if there is really anything left to do to make a difference in the elections that are now just days away. Can we really change hearts and minds? What are our hard-earned dollars paying for? Does showing up at rallies, holding signs, writing postcards, do any good at this stage of the game? Will our donations do anything besides pay off the debts the megawatt campaigns have amassed?
Turns out that our efforts can still make a difference. Midterm elections historically have low turnout rates. Those who do vote have strong feelings about the issues and what’s at stake. Informing unengaged voters about threats to their livelihoods and economic status, their healthcare and their children’s educations can prompt them to vote. Helping them register to vote and get to the polls can offer an extra push. Seeing their friends and neighbors show up and speak out can create good old peer pressure.
These efforts include one-on-one conversations. No one likes picking a fight at the extended family dinner table, and hostile interactions rarely change minds anyway. But a civil interaction that begins with, "I was reading something interesting that I wanted to share with you….” may open the door for encouraging talk about health care or education or the importance of voting. Worth a try?
As for the money, not all campaign workers are volunteers. There are professionals who do this for a living and must get paid. That includes the marketing whizzes who come up with the catchy phrases and slogans, the strategists who figure out how to reach the various demographics, the videographers and content creators for print and social media, the editors and graphic designers, the fact checkers and stylists, and the list goes on.
Then there’s the transportation and accommodations for the candidates and their families and staff. And don’t forget the rental of halls for appearances and bumper stickers and buttons and hats and t-shirts.
And guess what? The ads on television and radio that were affordable at the outset of campaign season have risen in price astronomically, just when they are most needed. So whatever we all gave early in the game doesn’t go as far in helping our chosen candidates now.
Volunteers knocking on doors help enormously, but there are never enough, so their numbers need to be augmented by paid workers. Together they are very effective. Statistics show that a conversation with reluctant voters at their front doors can indeed encourage them to get out and vote.
There are several close races that could determine control of the Senate and House, as well as important contests in our own communities. Some people are unsure of whom to vote for; more are thinking of just staying home on election day. We can’t — and we don’t need to — convince them all to vote. We just need some of them to exercise their right and responsibility to cast their votes for the candidates who best represent the values and politics they believe the United States of America should uphold.
So, let’s all wear our buttons and t-shirts and hats, plaster our bumper stickers on our cars, hold our signs at whatever rallies we can, and give our money to the candidates of our choice. When we watch the results come in, we want to be able to say, “We did our best for the future of America!”
Therese (she/her/hers)
Judy (she/her/hers)
Didi (she/her/hers)
Leading Ladies Executive Team
Leadingladiesvote.org
ladies@leadingladiesvote.org