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- Your favored
candidates may be outspent, but if they out-organize, they may be able to
prevail.
posted Sep 19, 2012
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Recently, a respected friend sent me an outraged email. His subject line:
"BOYCOTT VOTING!" He was at wit's end over the vast sums of money that wealthy
individuals and corporations are pouring into our elections: $400 million from
the Koch Brothers; $100 million from Sheldon Adelson. If big money is going to
buy the election, he said, then he will “withdraw his consent” by not
voting.
I, too, am apoplectic at the money flooding our elections. It speaks of a
level of corruption that undermines my hopes for solving the big problems of our
time. That’s why I’m promoting the passage of
a
constitutional amendment to curtail unlimited election spending.
But is boycotting the vote the right response? Here’s how I see it: the big
money doesn’t buy votes. It mostly buys television ads to influence our votes or
discourage us from voting at all. So why would I fall into the trap of doing
what the big money wants? As I wrote to my friend, after the election, no one
will notice your boycott. They will only notice who won. Think of your vote as
an act of protest and vote for candidates who vow to change the system. Here's
what you can do:
1. Vote the Whole Ballot
Vote the whole ballot. When we reach the bottom of the ballot, many of us
find a bunch of names and initiatives we don’t know
and skip them. Judicial
positions are notorious for low vote tallies. So a few voters can determine who
wins positions that can have
sidelined and stolen this year, but here
are a buzzwords. Then I
check with friends for additional
few simple things we can do. information. I also sign up for emails from
organizations that
recommend candidates who match my values.
So when I go to vote, I make my choices with confidence.
2. Contribute to Campaigns ...
Another conundrum in this money-soaked election season is whether to give
money to candidates. Does our measly $25, $50, or even $500 mean anything when
the 1 percent can so far outspend us? My husband is pretty cynical about
political contributions. But do we want to force candidates to get their funds
only from the wealthy? One candidate told me, “I need to raise at least
one-fifth of what my deep-pocketed opponent raises. Otherwise, I’m just not a
player.” I like this candidate. I think she has smarts and integrity. She wants
to overturn
Citizens United and other laws that make campaigns so
expensive. So I (yes, together with my husband) made a contribution to her
campaign, as well as to several other candidates we believe in.
3. ... But Not Just Money
Fortunately, money is not the only way to influence an election. Giving time
can be even more valuable. One respectful conversation with a potential voter
can reverse the effects of thousands of dollars of ads. Going door to door,
phoning, helping people get registered and to the polls can all make a
difference. Your favored candidates may be outspent, but if they out-organize,
they may be able to prevail. Organizing, of course, means getting people like
you and me to volunteer.
It’s easy to be discouraged about a political system that seems so out of
reach. I take heart from history. In the Gilded Age of the late 19th century,
income inequality was similar to today’s. There was widespread political
corruption. Then people rose up and ushered in the Progressive Era. They voted
in candidates who instituted the estate tax and progressive income taxes,
changed election laws, and made many other reforms.
By the 1950s through the 1970s we had an expanding middle class and a fairer
election system. We can make those changes again. But only if we get engaged and
informed, and vote.
Fran Korten wrote this article for
It's Your Body,
the Fall 2012 issue of YES! Magazine. Fran is publisher of YES
http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/its-your-body/is-your-vote-for-sale?utm_source=wkly20120921&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=mrKorten