Shoutout to all the people of Ohio who just passed abortion, contraception, and reproductive rights of all people into constitutional law by a fucking 12+ point margin despite the state legislature desperately trying to do everything they can to fuck up the vote. I'm so proud of y'all!!

Edit: Trans people fucking rule, sex work is cool and deserves respect, sex isn't a binary, gender critical theory is based on terrible disproven science and is just Phrenology for sex.

NICE JOB OHIO! ABORTION RIGHTS ENSHRINED IN STATE CONSTITUTION

Dave Wasserman

@Redistrict

"I've seen enough: in a victory for the pro-choice side, Ohio Issue 1, a measure to establish a right to an abortion in the state constitution, passes."

Just some of last night’s historic wins 🥳

It's nearly the NZ election!

Advance voting has opened in New Zealand today so I thought it was about time to reshare my Orange Voting Mascot erotica from 2020 for those who haven't seen it.

In all seriousness, this election could be one of the biggest of our lifetimes. The rise of conspiracy theories, violence and transphobia within candidates who have a BIG CHANCE of getting elected is terrifying, and we should all be afraid of what they'll do to our people.

Young people (18-35) always fail to turn out to the polls. It's something like forty percent of youth aren't even enrolled, while across all other demographics it's only between 1-5%.

Voting is such a privilege and is so, so important and it is insanely easy to get it done. Wherever you are in NZ, there's a high chance you're within 20km of a voting booth. Voting takes between 5-10 mins.

If our demographic turns out and makes an effort, we will elect people who will make substantial change, rather that lumbering along with centrists who make boring policy and insubstantial effort in government.

our world is burning. this election means something.

here are some resources that might help you out. you've got till the 14th of October. if you're 18 and above before or on the 14th of October, please don't squander this chance.

How to enrol (you can even enrol on the day!)

Places to vote

The people you have to vote for (by address)

A quiz that might help you figure out where you should put your vote, based on what you're interested in

Ohio voters handed anti-abortion Republicans a stinging defeat. Those voters approved Issue 1 which puts reproductive freedom into the Ohio Constitution. The just passed amendment also protects the right to contraception and fertility treatment.

Results are still coming in. But with 85% of the votes counted, about 55.5% of Ohioans voted to protect reproductive freedom. And most of the remaining uncounted votes come from large urban counties which approved Issue 1 with over 65% of the vote.

Ohio voters approved a constitutional amendment on Tuesday that ensures access to abortion and other forms of reproductive health care, the latest victory for abortion rights supporters since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year. Ohio became the seventh state where voters decided to protect abortion access after the landmark ruling and was the only state to consider a statewide abortion rights question this year. The outcome of the intense, off-year election could be a bellwether for 2024, when Democrats hope the issue will energize their voters and help President Joe Biden keep the White House. Voters in Arizona, Missouri and elsewhere are expected to vote on similar protections next year. Ohio’s constitutional amendment, on the ballot as Issue 1, included some of the most protective language for abortion access of any statewide ballot initiative since the Supreme Court’s ruling. Opponents had argued that the amendment would threaten parental rights, allow unrestricted gender surgeries for minors and revive “partial birth” abortions, which are federally banned. Before the Ohio vote, statewide initiatives in California, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Montana and Vermont had either affirmed abortion access or turned back attempts to undermine the right. Issue 1 specifically declared an individual’s right to “make and carry out one’s own reproductive decisions,” including birth control, fertility treatments, miscarriage and abortion.

It's a great victory for women and freedom in general. And it's a bad omen for GOP prospects in 2024.

Donald Trump carried Ohio both in 2016 and 2020. But the Republican insistence on controlling women's bodies will probably hurt the party there and elsewhere. And any attempt by the GOP to moderate its stand on abortion will result in major pushback by radical fundamentalist Christians who would like to return to the societal standards of the 17th century.

Digging up old art so Smol Essek can give a timely reminder to my fellow US folks! Yes, the power structures in this country seem entrenched and it sometimes feels like our votes are futile, but we can’t Leave The World Better with apathy. We gotta try.

Not sure who to vote for? Go to vote411.org and enter your address to see your races and candidates. Looking at endorsements is a fast and easy way to cut through word salad campaign talk and get a read on whether or not a candidate aligns with your views on the issues!

Also, don’t sleep on your local and judicial races! Most of the folks out showing their crazy on a state/national level got their start as members of city council or your local school board. Cockblock the crazy at the local level so they don’t get a foot in the door!

Either way, our planet is doomed.

'Makes the ACT party look more palatable'

And that's why she's dangerous and I don't trust her.

There's No Such Thing as an Off-Year: You Better Vote 2023.

It feels like every day you read about a horrible new law being passed by a Republican State government, or a Republican governor saying something horrible usually about trans children or drag queens. It can feel like there's nothing you can do, its an off year for elections so you just have to sit and wait and hope they don't get to pass too much terrible shit before Election Day 2024. Well you're wrong! there are elections in 2023! and big ones! There are 3 Governor's races and 4 state legislature races this year!

Before we go any farther I need EVERYONE (who is an American, sorry non-Americans I know we're annoying) to PLEASE check if you're registered to vote, Republican elections officials love to purge voters from the rolls. If you're under 18 but will be 18 by the next election many states allow you to pre-register and you should:

VOTE

Also if you don't live in a state listed below, you should check to see if you're city/town council, county commission, or local school board are holding election this year, Check!

Governors:

Kentucky:

If you're not from Kentucky you might not know that the home of Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul has a Democratic Governor, but it does, Andy Beshear. Governor Beshear from his time as Attorney General (2016-2019) through his first term as Governor has been a support of trans rights in Kentucky. Beshaer vetoed a sweeping anti-trans bill last month, sadly the Republican super majority overrode his vetoed. However Beshear and his veto powers is the one thing standing in the way of Kentucky becoming like its neighbor to the south Tennessee which is leading the nation is extreme anti-LGBT laws and general undemocratic behavior. On his second day in office Governor Beshear restored the voting rights to nearly 200,000 former (nonviolent) felons, disproportionately African-Americans. During the Covid pandemic Governor Beshear became a national leader in fighting Covid disinformation and enforcing recommended public health rules while Republican governors in the states around him denied science and let people die by fighting mask mandates and shut downs. Governor Beshear is also strongly pro-choice, he's endorsed by Planned Parenthood and NARAL, he helped expand access by allowing a second clinic to provide abortions in the state, and has vetoed efforts to restrict abortion in the state. Having a Democratic Governor is so important to mitigating the harm of the Republican legislature and improving the lives of people in Kentucky. So if you live in Kentucky of course vote, but also if you live in or near Kentucky please please think about volunteering just a little of your time to talk to voters and explain why this is important and if you don't live near Kentucky you can donate even a dollar helps or buy a hat or bag to help

VOTE VOLUNTEER SHOP DONATE

Mississippi:

It's pretty rare Democrats get a shot at the governorship in a state like Mississippi but 2023 might really be that chance. If you look at health, education, child hunger, unemployment, and life expectancy Mississippi regularly ranks near or sometimes at the bottom of states. When you understand just under 40% of the state (38%) is Black and Republicans have dominated politics for a generation those numbers start to make painful sense, it's intentional. However! we face a rare moment where Democrats might take the governor's mansion in Jackson. The last election in 2019 was unusually close (52-47) and since then Republican Governor Tate Reeves has been mired in a welfare scam scandal (involving Brett Favre of all people) and a failure to deal with a water crisis in Jackson the state's capital and largest city that left 150,000 people without clean water. Reeves is today the least popular Republican Governor in the nation. The Democratic candidate is Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley (yes he is related to Elvis Presley, yes really). Presley was elected his hometown's mayor at the age of 23, the youngest mayor in the history of the state. In 2007 he was elected to Mississippi's powerful Public Service Commission representing the northern 3rd of the state, he's won re-election in 2011, 2015 and 2019. The Public Service Commission regulates electricity, railroads, and internet service in the state of Mississippi. As a commissioner Presley repeatedly blocked efforts for "clean" coal in the state and managed to push through the largest solar power protect east of the Rocky Mountains. He's also made bring high speed Internet to rural communities in the state a main part of his mission on the commission. Presley wants to expand Medicaid (remember worst health outcomes in America?) Mississippi is one of just 10 states that still hasn't expanded it under Obamacare. He also wants to do away with the grocery tax and fully fund education. Reaves is against the first two and has mocked and blocked efforts to fund education. Mississippi for the first time in a long time has a chance of electing a governor who cares and will fight to improve people's lives. If you live in Mississippi of course vote, but also volunteer, if you live near Mississippi take a weekend to travel to the state and volunteer, if you don't live near Mississippi please give what you can donate or shop

VOTE VOLUNTEER SHOP DONATE

Louisiana:

Not gonna lie Louisiana will be the hardest lift this year. For the last 8 years the state has had a Democratic Governor, John Bel Edwards first elected in 2015 and now term-limited so he can't run again. While being thought of as a conservative Democrat (it is Louisiana after all) Edwards as done a lot of good, he expanded medicare in the state and cut the number of uninsured people in half in his first year in office. One of his first acts was to sign an executive order protecting LGBT people from job discrimination and repealed a Republican executive order protecting companies from discriminating against same sex couples. Republicans are desperate to retake this Deep South Governorship. The Republicans have endorsed the state's Attorney General, Jeff Landry. Landry sued Governor Edwards in 2016 to block his LGBT protections, even though Landry's brother is openly gay and spoke against the suit. Landry joined election denying law suits trying to overturn the 2020 election. He sued the federal government over Covid vaccine mandates for health care workers. Landry has lobbied with other Republican AGs to stop Title IX from being used to cover protect trans students. On the Democratic side Democrats have rallied behind Shawn Wilson who served as Governor Edwards' Secretary of transportation for the last 8 years. Wilson would be the first black governor in the history of Louisiana a state that is just over 30% African American, and the first black governor from the Deep South. Wilson favors raising Louisiana's minimum wage, stuck at the federal minimum of $7.25 an hour. He's for investing in costal communities facing the effects of climate change. Wilson also represents a major shift in Louisiana politics, he's pro-choice while Governor Edwards is anti-abortion. This represents a big move, when Edwards was first elected just under 60% of voters in the state say they wanted Abortion to be illegal, in 2022 that had shrunk down to just under 50%. Louisiana has a choice between becoming a radically anti-LGBT state run by an election denier, or protecting progress made and electing a pro-choice black Democrat. If you live in Louisiana make sure you're registered to vote, and everyone you know knows to vote. If you're in Louisiana or close to it volunteer just for a weekend. If you don't live close donate or buy something.

VOTE VOLUNTEER SHOP DONATE

Other Statewide Offices:

This year in Kentucky, Louisiana, and Mississippi there are also statewide elections for the important and powerful but often over looked jobs of Attorney General, Secretary of State, Treasurer, and Agriculture Commissioner. Sadly each of these posts in the 3 states is currently held by a Republican. These jobs, particularly Attorney General the chief law enforcement office in the state and Secretary of State that over sees elections are very important. Traditionally because they're more overlooked Democrats in Red states manage to pick them up. If you live in Kentucky, Louisiana, and Mississippi please do your research, remember to vote all the way down the ticket and get involved, these jobs often times don't get coverage but they are important. I'd like to briefly highlight just one race. In Kentucky the Republican Attorney General (who tried to use Covid to ban abortion, and then sued against masks) is running to unseat Governor Beshear. Democratic State Rep Pamela Stevenson is running to fill the seat. I could say a lot of things but just watch this fire breathing speech by Representative Stevenson in support of trans rights

Stevenson would also be the first black woman elected to statewide office in Kentucky, so check her website give her a dollar, volunteer if you're in Kentucky

State Legislative elections

Four states, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Virginia are having elections for their state House and Senates. If you've been frustrated, horrified, and/or scared by the flood of anti-trans, anti-abortion and anti-LGBT more generally bills that seem to be coming out of state legislatures every single day this year, well here's your chance to really effect that.

Virginia

In 2021 Republican Glenn Youngkin narrowly won Virginia's governorship. While some in the media tried to paint Youngkin as "moderate" his governorship so far as been consumed with a war on diversity, trying to ban "CRT" and setting up a hotline to report "divisive practices" in schools. He also attacked trans students by trying to overturn the progress made under the last Democratic Governor and changing school policies to enact a bathroom ban, a pronoun/name change ban and out students to parents. After a mass walk out by students in the state Youngkin was forced to put those policies on hold. In the same election Youngkin won in 2021 Republicans narrowly, 52 to 48, took control of the Virginia House of Delegates. Thankfully Democrats retained control of the State Senate, 22-18, which has served as a block on Youngkin, stopping him from appointing a former Trump official and coal lobbyist to head the states environmental protection. It's very important to protect the Senate majority and retake the House to block the worst of Youngkin, protect Virginia's students, and set the state up to take back the governorship. One special shout out, the first openly trans person to be elected to state government, Danica Roem, was elected to the Virginia House in 2017. After being re-elected twice, Roem is running for the State Senate. If she wins it'll be the first time a trans person has been elected to both houses of a state legislature, and the first time a trans politician has "moved up" an important step to maybe one day a Congresswoman Roem. Check her website to see how you can help make a little trans history. Make sure to VOTE, VOLUNTEER, and DONATE

Louisiana and Mississippi

both Louisiana and Mississippi have Republican majorities in their state House and Senate and pretty big majorities. But thats not a reason to give up hope. One of the big problems we see across the country is Republican super majorities or veto proof majorities were there's no break on the most extreme instincts of the Republicans. Republicans have a super majority in all four chambers of these state legislatures. However flipping just a few seats will drastically reduce the power of out of control Republicans. Particularly if either state manages to elect a Democratic governor. A Democratic governor facing a veto proof Republican state legislature is greatly reduced in what they can do to block the worst. Democratic governors in Kentucky and Kansas both vetoed hateful anti-trans laws only to be overridden by Republican supermajorities. However again only flipping just 3 seats in the Louisiana House (for example) will strip Republicans of their super majority and force Republicans to have to talk to the Democratic minority on issues rather than steamrolling over them. If you're in Louisiana or Mississippi you should have already checked if you're registered to vote, but check the Louisiana and Mississippi Democratic Parties for ways to help.

New Jersey

New Jersey is a blue state with a Democratic governor and Democrats control both houses of the state legislature. But thats no reason to get complacent! Democrats don't have a super majority in either house of New Jersey's legislature, a more deeply blue state government can push forward strong bills. Governor Phil Murphy has been an aggressively progressive guy which is a big contrast to former governor Trump ally Chris Christie. In the 2018 US House election Democrats won all but one of New Jersey's Congressional seats, by 2022 there were 3 Republicans representing New Jersey in Congress, the road to winning back the US House runs through flipping New Jersey's Republican seats and that starts by building a strong ground game and an engaged voter base in these elections right here. Don't take it for granted, don't sit it out. If you're in New Jersey VOTE, VOLUNTEER and DONATE

Special elections

If you don't live in Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, or Virginia like I said at the top there are LOTS of elections to city/town council, county government, judgeships, local DAs, and school boards all the time. So far in 2023 there have been 14 states that have had a special election to fill a vacancy in their state legislature so pay attention there may be an important election coming your way. And finally before I got I have to highlight two special elections everyone in America needs to be paying attention to

Tennessee

In the aftermath of the Covenant School shooting three Democratic members of the Tennessee House joined protesters calling for action on gun control. Rather than take action on gun control the Republican super majority in the State House filed to expel the three from office. In the final vote the two black Representatives, Justin Jones and Justin Pearson were expelled from office while their white colleague, Gloria Johnson, who did the same thing, was not expelled by the Republicans. This is a naked assault on democracy, with the Republican majority declaring they get to decide who their opposition is, and that they get to override the will of the voters whenever a black member of the House hurts their feelings. And expelling the black members and not the one white member for the same behavior is nakedly racist. There's lots more shitty details that I can't get into but if you're in Tennessee make sure you're registered to VOTE because the assault on your rights is fully under way. Both Jones and Pearson have made it clear they plan to run for re-election in the special elections set off by their expulsion. So if you live in Nashville (Jones' district) or Memphis (Pearson's district) you better show up, vote, tell everyone to vote, if you live anywhere in Tennessee please check their webpages (Justin Jones, Justin Pearson) for ways to volunteer and get out the vote. Where ever you live you can DONATE that link gives to them both jointly. Also check out the Tennessee Democrats because you better not let this moment pass, you need to gear up to fight for next year.

Please Remember to VOTE, but also volunteer, and engage, there are big elections happening all the time, and next year will be even bigger.

"HISTORY IN VIRGINIA. Congratulations to Senator-elect @pwcdanica on your historic victory! Senator-elect Roem is the first openly trans person elected to the Virginia State Senate! Read our full statement at http://evadvocates.org/news"

Source: https://twitter.com/EqualityVA/status/1722080845807161656

Fans of The Great North, hope y'all enjoyed your time as champions throughout the past year and now, with Season 4 on the way in less than a few weeks...despite being pushed back from the Fall schedule because of the strikes, but that's not what we're talking about, your time as champions will come to an end in less than 30 minutes. Handing the crown and the title of “champion” to the next fandom up. And looking at the results, if it stands once poll closing hits, y'all did your service in keeping this particular series' seat warm because it's your cousin show, Bob's Burgers, going for a third title. Passing the baton from Judy Tobin to Louise Belcher.

It is my 30th birthday tomorrow and the fine voters of my state gave me legal drugs and reproductive rights, truly could not be happier

Rob Rogers, TinyView.com

* * * *

HOW DOBBS IS SHAPING THE 2024 ELECTION

I like going back a few months to see how the experts were looking to where we are now.

Some months back, I watched MSNBC's Steve Kornacke with his "board" comparing winning margins in certain districts, mostly state legislative and congressional, over time. What he was reporting was that Democrats were improving their performance across the board by 5-10 percent, whether they won or lost. You'll note that here as well. This article is a few months old.

But a president's party usually takes a hit in his first midterm. And Biden's approval rating has been underwater for a long while. What gives? Has there been some overlooked event that made Wisconsin's Supreme Court race a blowout for the Democrats. Wisconsin is supposed to be 50/50. What about that Supreme Court race in Pennsylvania 10 days ago? Democrat won handily. BOTH these newly elected justices said they were pro-choice. Is THAT what gives?

KY Gov. Andy Beshear won against an unpopular incumbent governor in 2019 by 0.4%. After Dobbs, he won against Mitch McConnel's choice by 5.0%., running explicitly on choice. Is that the 5% Kornacke surmised about? Who can say for sure?

What this article tells us is that, looking ahead to future elections, we can either listen to the noise (TV, polls, social media) or watch the signals (election results). Sometimes there are unclear signals. But this is not "sometimes". As noted by one Democratic strategist in this article, "the rules have been rewritten, we don't know what they are."

"We're using old benchmarks to try to forecast going forward. And I think what we need to look at is less of the noise and more of signal," he said. "Right now, the noise is [what] you see on cable news, and it's people tweeting all day. The signal, what we should be looking for, are election results. That's what ultimately is telling the story."

Florida's Trumplicans are doing their best to keep any abortion referendum off the ballot. Despite their triumphalism in the wake of DeSantis's big win last year, they know that his 6-week ban (signed without the usual fanfare) has 4 million women mighty anxious. My sense, based on what we've seen since Dobbs, is that whether the referendum is on the ballot or not, Biden should pick up votes in Florida. A switch of 1.7% from 2020 wins Florida for him. If the referendum DOES get on the ballot, we'll know exactly what impact abortion feelings played by comparing its yes votes to Biden votes. Even if the measure does not meet a 60% threshold, and it gets, let's say, 55%, I can't see those voters negating that vote by selecting Trump who himself bragged about ending Roe.

And something similar is happening in Arizona. And, in Nevada's effort to enshrine their right with a constitutional amendment. Just compare the Biden vote to the abortion referendum votes IF they get on the ballot. The major obstacle, it appears, will be whether the state courts put the kibosh on these efforts. Even if they do, Biden is likely to be their proxy vote. Still, especially in Florida, abortion advocates are hard at work, and if they get their chance to vote on the issue, the 60% threshold is likely to be less of an obstacle and more of a challenge to get women and their supporters out to vote. That's good news for Team Blue.

[ABC News via Steven Jennings]

Tuesday is Election Day in many parts of the US.

VOTE! 🗳 🇺🇸

A number of sites provide you with an opportunity to see who is on your ballot and what issues are being contested. They don't include an actual image of your ballot but they do let you know what's on it.

VOTE411 Voter Guide

Sample Ballot Lookup - Ballotpedia

Vote Informed on the Entire Ballot - BallotReady

Of course check the site of your local election authority. In some places it's the county clerk and in others it's a board of elections. The elections mentioned in this post are a small number of those around the US on November 7th.

Because of the GOP SCOTUS overturning of Roe v. Wade, state legislatures now determine whether a state supports reproductive freedom or not. State governments have been badly neglected by liberals for decades — and that situation needs to end.

Both chambers of the state legislature in Virginia are up for election on Tuesday. If both fall under Republican control then the state will join the rest of the South in restricting abortion.

Virginia is not the only state having elections for its state officials.

STATES HOLDING ELECTIONS FOR STATE LEGISLATURE

Virginia

New Jersey

Mississippi

Louisiana

STATES HOLDING ELECTIONS FOR GOVERNOR

Kentucky

Louisiana

Mississippi

There are numerous municipal elections, special elections, ballot measures, and constitutional amendments to be decided on Tuesday.

The biggie is the Ohio constitutional amendment on reproductive freedom. Voters in Ohio have the opportunity to overturn the gerrymandered Ohio Republican legislature's ban on abortion. Vote YES on Ohio Issue 1.

A very local but important contest is the special legislative election in New Hampshire to fill a vacancy in Hillsborough County District 3 (in the Nashua area). Right now Republicans have a one seat advantage in the New Hampshire House of Representatives. If Democrat Paige Beauchemin wins this seat then Republicans will be forced to share power with Democrats in the chamber.

Good candidates for federal office often emerge from state and local government. Before he was elected to the US Senate in 2004, Barack Obama served several terms in the Illinois legislature.

There is no such thing as an unimportant election.