‘Voting and Elections’ Archives
City Council Candidates Are On The Ballot —What Has Changed Since 2021?
By THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS MINNEAPOLIS Because of the redistricting process completed in 2022, every Minneapolis City Council member will be up for reelection this year to serve a two-year term; only in 2025 will Council candidates be back on the ballot for the traditional four-year term. Also, this will be the first election for the thirteen City Council members following major changes to the City Charter (the city’s constitution). Charter Amendment No. 184, passed in the municipal election of 2021, has redefined our city structure. Before this process, the Government Structure Work Group described the city “as a complex patchwork of existing laws that has been in place since 1920.” Known for years as a “weak mayor-strong council” system, Minneapolis has been transformed into an “executive mayor-legislative council” form of government. But what does that mean? What role will the City Council play now? In the 1980s Mayor Don Fraser failed to pass a strong [...]
MY VOTE. WHAT DOES IT MATTER?
Article #6 in a series of articles about the 2022 midterm elections, brought to you by the League of Women Voters Minneapolis. MY VOTE. WHAT DOES IT MATTER? We’re often encouraged to vote. “It’s important. It’s our duty. It makes a difference.” But really what does it matter? How does my vote affect me? Actually, our one vote affects an outcome directly only when we’re voting on amendments, like the three on last year’s ballot. Instead, what our vote really does is elect a PERSON to represent us, a person whose vote in Congress or the Legislature reflects our wishes. That’s why we have to examine candidates thoroughly beforehand to see that their views correspond to what we need and want. For example, if we’re interested in public safety, we’ll want to know a congressional candidate’s attitude toward gun violence and qualified immunity. How they vote on our behalf may give us better (or sometimes worse) protection. How do prospective state legislators [...]
Who Votes, Who Doesn’t and Why?
ARTICLE #5 IN A SERIES OF ARTICLES ABOUT THE 2022 MIDTERM ELECTIONS, BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS MINNEAPOLIS. Recent Supreme Court rulings have exposed the reality that government representatives often don’t act in accordance with the will of the people. Polls indicate, for example, that Americans support access to abortion, yet the highest court in the land rescinded that right. So why the disconnect? It’s about voting – who votes, who doesn’t and why. Among the pool of all eligible voters in the U.S., approximately 1 out of 3 did NOT vote in the 2020 Presidential election. The top reasons that these 77 million Americans did not vote were 1) lack of interest in politics 2) they didn’t like the candidates and 3) they didn’t think their votes would matter. Those least likely to vote were under 34, Hispanic, less educated, unmarried and with lower incomes. Difficulty of voting was not identified as a major reason for not voting, but we know there are [...]
