Weekly Update: October 4, 2024

The Headlines

Voting for the November general election started last week in Michigan, so we are now counting down until voting ends. There are only 32 days left to reach voters! 

In the last update I told you how Voters Not Politicians is raising awareness about the Michigan Supreme Court race through our “Flip It, Don’t Skip It” campaign. This week, my update is  focused on the Michigan State House. 

We’re excited to share the Voters Not Politicians Pro-Democracy Legislative Scorecard to help our partners and the public identify the Michigan legislators in both chambers who have voted for pro-voter, pro-democracy legislation this session, and those who haven’t. You’ll likely notice a disturbing pattern in how certain lawmakers have voted.

And finally, we’re happy to report the work that Voters Action Committee is doing in three key districts to help ensure a pro-democracy majority in the Michigan House next cycle.   

The Details

Pro-Democracy Legislative Scorecard

  • Last month, Voters Not Politicians published a first-of-its-kind Pro-Democracy Legislative Scorecard that tracks how lawmakers voted on critical legislation during the 102nd Michigan Legislative session.
  • The scorecard depicts each individual lawmaker’s vote on important bills, like regulating the use of AI in political ads, creating secure automatic voter registration, and implementing the voting rights approved by millions of Michigan voters through Proposal 22-2.
  • We created this scorecard because voters deserve to know how their elected representatives voted on pro-democracy issues, especially at a time when our elections, voting rights, and democracy are under attack.
  • The scorecard makes a disappointing reality crystal clear: Only 56 out of 110 representatives consistently voted in favor of pro-democracy issues. 

Voters Action Committee

  • In the last 2 years, Michigan’s pro-voter legislature was responsible for passing a record number of laws that protected voting rights, expanded our options to cast a ballot, and defended both our elections and those who administer them.
  • However, as VNP’s Pro-Democracy Legislative Scorecard demonstrates, losing just one pro-voter seat in the legislature would put an immediate end to that progress.
  • Voters Action Committee is working to protect our pro-voter majority by targeting anti-democracy candidates three state house districts:
    • Kathy Schmaltz and Donnie Steele, incumbent lawmakers who voted against legislation to expand and protect the constitutional right to vote.
    • Steve Frisbie, who was labeled a threat to democracy because he participated in election denial activities.1 
  • We are also lifting up the pro-voter candidates in these races. All three candidates are VNP Pro-Voter Approved and two of them have demonstrated support for critical campaign finance reform by taking the Taking Back Our Power pledge.
    • Jim Haadsma in House District 44
    • Daniel Mahoney in House District 46
    • Shadia Martini in House District 54
  • Voters Action Committee will reach a universe of over 45,000 voters across the three districts through door knocking, direct mail, and digital ads. 
  • By informing voters of the clear anti-democracy vs pro-democracy records of the candidates, as well as the importance of maintaining a pro-voter majority in the state house, we aim to secure a pro-voter legislature for the next legislative session and continue to pass legislative reforms that strengthen Michigan’s democracy.

What’s Next

Voters Not Politicians is encouraging all partners to share our Pro-Democracy Legislative Scorecard to show voters which lawmakers are willing to protect their rights and defend voters, and which aren’t. 

Voters Action Committee will be hosting volunteer canvasses in our target districts now through the end of voting on November 5. Individuals and groups interested in joining us should check out our new 2024 Election – Volunteer Opportunities page. 

1Democracy Under Threat: A Spotlight on 204 Officials Who Could Undermine Our Elections

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