Our Democracy Needs More Participation!
--guest post by Jen Laverdure, AFSCME Local 328 PAC member--
If you are feeling as tired of politics and COVID-19 and elections as I am, that’s completely understandable. But here’s the thing: our national elections are not over. On January 5, 2021, Georgia is electing not one, but TWO United States senators — this election will determine which party controls the Senate in 2021, 2022, and maybe even longer.
Due to the efforts of groups like Stacey Abrams’ Fair Fight, Georgia has seen one of the biggest changes in historical electorate sentiment, with Joe Biden being the first Democrat to win the state since Bill Clinton in 1992.
This is another all-hands-on-deck effort as Georgia’s history with voter suppression is rather recent (Governor Brian Kemp infamously purged eligible voters from the rolls and as Secretary of State oversaw an election in which he ran for governor, decidedly a conflict of interest*). Whether you’re a Democrat or a Republican, this is a critical election that needs the many voices of voters to be heard on January 5.
I have been fundraising for the candidates I want to see win these seats and I am going to volunteer for at least one get-out-the-vote shift over the next month. I personally did some phone-banking through the American Civil Liberties Union for the November 3 election and it was actually not bad. I hadn’t looked forward to it, as I am not a big phone person, but I did a three-hour shift that went by rather quickly and painlessly.
Are you interested in reaching out to eligible Georgia voters, encouraging them to register to vote, request absentee ballots or vote early? AFSCME Local 328’s political-action committee is organizing text- and phone-banking. This is an easy way, from the comfort of your own home, to make sure control of the U.S. Senate is determined in a free and fair election. Please contact the PAC by emailing committee chair Eli Shannon. You can also reach out to Fair Fight to see how you can help in other ways.
The critical dates in Georgia are:
December 7: voter-registration deadline
December 14: early voting begins
January 5: Election Day.
If you agree that democracy needs to be shaped by all of us, get involved in this Georgia election.
* “Brian Kemp’s Lead in Georgia Needs an Asterisk,” The Atlantic, November 7, 2018; “Brian Kemp’s Win in Georgia Is Tainted by Voter Suppression,” Mother Jones, November 16, 2018