Early voting begins today for Wisconsin's Aug. 13 primary election and nonpartisan outreach groups said their efforts to convince reluctant voters to participate this time around continue to evolve.
Ahead of the November election and the closely watched presidential race, Wisconsin voters have a chance to decide primary races for U.S. Senate, the state Legislature and two ballot questions.
Rhonda Lindner, statewide organizer for the Wisconsin Interfaith Voter Engagement Campaign, said part of their mission is to connect with registered voters from different political backgrounds who sat out the midterms in 2022. She said it is not just about bombarding them with information.
"Listening to them, valuing what they have to say and understanding why perhaps they've been disengaged for a while," Lindner explained.
Her group also has embraced postcarding, which became popular during the pandemic. In this election cycle, Lindner's team sent out more than 1,600 postcards with handwritten messages to low-propensity voters in select areas. She acknowledged the more personal approach might not galvanize a wave of participation from the group but added it can serve as a gateway to civic engagement.
Lindner pointed out that getting people at least thinking about voting again can eventually pay off, especially if loved ones are part of the conversation. Reminding individuals about the importance of local elections versus national races has been a longstanding approach but Lindner noted it is another important tool.
"Oftentimes these are voters who are just thinking on the national level of a presidential election, they're not considering the down-ballot races and how down ballot races can directly impact their neighborhoods," Lindner emphasized.
Some legislative districts will be more competitive after the state Supreme Court ordered fair political maps. The decision followed years of claims Wisconsin Republicans carried out extreme partisan gerrymandering in leading redistricting. Organizers hope new names on the ballots will spur voter interest.
Meanwhile, the ballot questions have to do with who should have more control at the state level, either the GOP-led Legislature or the governor's office, in making use of federal funding for Wisconsin.
Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.
