September Election News
Happy election season! We are 6 weeks away from November 2nd, when Boulder voters will decide which five people will take a seat on the city council dais. It’s a huge election, and the stakes couldn’t be higher. Securing a progressively-minded council majority will determine our ability to enact meaningful climate and transportation policy, as well as taking action on pressing housing, human service, and social justice issues.
Need a refresher on how Boulder’s city council is structured, how many council members there are, how long they serve, or what the city manager does? Check out this great Local Government 101 guide from the Boulder Beat.
Thanks for joining us today. Let’s dive right in!
Help:
We’ve got big plans for this year’s elections, and your support will help us realize our goals. If you haven’t yet chipped in, please do so today. Currently we are about one-third of the way to our goal!
Here’s what we need to fund this week:
Printing expenses. Yard Signs. Flyers for the lit drop.
Advertising in print and social. Let’s let everyone know what great candidates we have.
Hosting a community forum for under represented voices.
All donations are welcome!
Awesome:
Yard signs are here! And in NPR/PBS style, we’re asking for a minimum $50 donation. We’ll bring one to your yard, balcony, window, or bike basket! Even more awesome? We’re making most deliveries by bike to support our environment.
Not Awesome:
You may have heard that a candidate for city council has levied the threat of a SLAPP lawsuit against the Boulder Progressives and other community members for sharing information about his past statements and the statements by persons with whom he affiliates. Threats like this don’t just impact us—they attempt to silence everyone who engages in public speech, and they weaken the health of our democracy. Public vetting of candidates who are seeking leadership roles is a critical and valid part of our electoral process.
We will continue advocating in Boulder for policies that protect human rights, and advance social and environmental justice at the local level.
Next:
If you’ve already contributed to our efforts, we encourage you to also contribute to The Boulder Coalition. This group is the Boulder Left’s big tent coalition. They’ll be putting their funds towards our election literature (which we could use help delivering!) as well as advertising in local voter guides.
Upcoming Events:
Sept 22 - Bike-to-work station in Central Park in the afternoon
Sept 23 - Candidate Forum at The Rayback Collective. RSVP here.
Oct 8 - Ballots start to drop - look for yours in the mail
Oct 24 - Last day to register to vote (to receive ballot by mail)
Nov 2 - Election Day. Same-day registration is available at voting centers
Interesting:
Montreal is one of the few cities in North America that has partisan elections at the local level. Over the last 15 years, their Progressive party, Projet Montréal, has steadily been gaining seats. After the 2017 election, they held a majority of seats on the council and the mayor’s office. They have used that influence to make massive strides in advancing both pedestrian and cycling needs (we seriously recommend checking out those video links, they are beautifully done). We look forward to having our own Progressive council here in Boulder that will urgently push many of these social infrastructure projects into reality.
Thanks again for your support, and as always, follow us on social!
Till next time,
BP
