Just this past week, Daily Kos shattered expectations by raising over half a million dollars to counter the impact of North Dakota Republicans’ voter ID law—a measure that directly targets the state’s Native voters by effectively invalidating a form of identification used by thousands.
GOP lawmakers were behind the passage of this voter suppression law in the first place, and their counterparts in states across the country have passed measures similarly targeting voters who tend to cast their ballots for Democrats. From onerous registration and voting requirements in Michigan aimed at college students and voter ID rules specifically “target[ing] African Americans with almost surgical precision” in North Carolina to strict ID requirements and limits on early voting days and locations impacting voters of color in Wisconsin, Republican state legislators have toiled tirelessly over the past decade to make voting more difficult in states all across the country.
Fighting these new laws with lawsuits and voter organization efforts can help counter their suppressive effects, but even when these measures are successful, they’re often palliative at best.
But you know how the saying goes: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
It’s time to stop voter suppression where it starts: at the state legislative level.
We can do this by stripping Republicans of their majorities in statehouses.
To this end, Daily Kos is excited to announce our endorsement of 12 women running in five key statehouses where Republicans are vulnerable.
- Kayser Enneking, Florida SD-08
- Janet Cruz, Florida SD-18
- Mari Manoogian, Michigan HD-40
- Padma Kuppa, Michigan HD-41
- Alberta Griffin, Michigan HD-61
- Julie von Haefen, North Carolina HD-36
- Christy Clark, North Carolina HD-98
- Danielle Otten, Pennsylvania HD-155
- Jennifer O’Mara, Pennsylvania HD-165
- Kristin Seale, Pennsylvania HD-168
- Kriss Marion, Wisconsin SD-17
- Lee Snodgrass, Wisconsin SD-19
Donate $3 today to elect these Democrats and fight voter suppression!
Flipping these seats is crucial to building Democratic power in each of these states—which is how we block further GOP erosion of voting rights and take back the ballot box access they’ve already stripped away.
Preventing these GOP-backed voter suppression laws from being passed in the first place is the best way to obviate their effects. And for the states with these measures already in place, electing lawmakers willing to repeal them is the next best thing.
And the best way to block and repeal voter suppression laws is, without question, winning Democratic majorities in state legislatures.
Additionally, these candidates are some of the record 2,381 Democratic women running for state legislative seats this fall.
It’s been demonstrated in state after state, year after year: Republicans want to suppress the vote, especially in already-marginalized communities. Democrats want to make casting a ballot easier for everyone.
It’s no coincidence that almost every state with vote-by-mail or automatic voter registration have Democratic majorities in their legislatures. And on Nov. 6, we can win Democratic majorities in even more.
Give $3 to help flip these legislatures and protect voting rights across the country!
