2020 Election Resources for the Creative Sector: a nonpartisan campaign to raise awareness and support for arts, culture, + creativity among voters and candidates
Here are links and information about the 2020 elections in Wisconsin and beyond. From polling locations, to registration, to policy issues, and everything in between, click the links below to find what you need. Remember, your vote counts! Get in touch with Arts Wisconsin with questions, comments, etc.
2020 Event, Election, Legislative and Other Important Dates:
- Tuesday, February 18, 2020 – spring primary (Supreme Court and local elections)
- March 30-31, 2020 – National Arts Action Summit, Washington, DC
- Tuesday, April 1, 2020: 2020 Federal Census begins
- Tuesday, April 7, 2020 – Wisconsin Spring Election and Presidential Preference Primary
- Thursday, April 16, 2020 – Creative Wisconsin Day (formerly Arts Day), Overture Center for the Arts, Madison
- July 13-16, 2020 – 2020 Democratic National Convention, Milwaukee, WI
- Tuesday, August 11, 2020 – Wisconsin partisan primary
- August 24-27, 2020 – 2020 Republican National Convention, Charlotte, NC
- Tuesday, November 3, 2020 – national general and Presidential elections
Important races to watch in 2020:
- US President and Vice President
- US House of Representatives (all 8 districts in Wisconsin)
- Wisconsin State Senate (even-numbered districts – 16 seats)
- Wisconsin State Legislature (all 99 districts)
- Supreme Court justice
Take action!
- In preparation for the November 2020 general election, Arts Wisconsin will distribute a survey to State Senate and State Assembly candidates to gauge their involvement in creative activities and support for investment in the arts and creativity for economic, educational and civic success. Watch for:
- Legislative Candidate Survey responses
- Template message to send to your candidates to ask them to respond to the survey
- Names and addresses of all candidates.
- Op-ed for a newspaper or write a blog post about the power and impact of the arts and creativity in your community and statewide.
State information:
- Wisconsin Elections Commission: www.elections.wi.gov/
- MyVote Wisconsin: www.myvote.wi.gov – are you registered to vote and do you know where you vote? Here’s where you can check those items and more – find your polling place, see what’s on your ballot, request an absentee ballot (military and permanent overseas voters only), and check provisional ballot status.
- Wisconsin Vote – a service of Wisconsin Public Radio and Wisconsin Public Television: www.wisconsinvote.org/
- WisPolitics: www.wispolitics.com
- How to obtain a Wisconsin Voter ID: www.wisconsindot.gov/Pages/dmv/license-drvs/how-to-apply/id-card.aspx
- Who are your legislators? www.maps.legis.wisconsin.gov
- League of Women Voters of Wisconsin: www.lwvwi.org
- Media (watch for more soon)
National information and resources:
- From Americans for the Arts’ ArtsVote 2020:
- The latest update about federal funding for the arts, culture and creativity (12-17-19): The U.S. House has voted to overwhelmingly pass all 12 fiscal year (FY) 2020 appropriations bills to fund the federal government. Significantly, the bills contained more arts-specific items than ever before. This includes funding for the National Endowment for the Arts: FY 2020 funding was increased by $7.25 million, the largest amount in a decade, to $162.25 million, as well as other federal cultural agencies, juvenile justice, arts education, and ground-breaking support for creative arts therapies in funding through the Defense Department and Veterans Affairs Department. Read Americans for the Arts’ President Bob Lynch’s statement on the largest increase to the NEA in a decade.
Resources:
- Five ThirtyEight – blog by Nate Silver: www.fivethirtyeight.com/
- Real Clear Politics: www.realclearpolitics.com/
- Americans for the Arts’ Arts Action Fund: www.artsactionfund.org
- TurboVote: www.turbovote.org
- League of Women Voters candidate information: www.VOTE411.org
- A detailed, interactive map of the 2016 elections (New York Times 7-25-18)
Nonprofits and advocacy resources:
- If you are involved with a 501c3 non-profit organization, here are election do’s and don’ts for non-profits, from Independent Sector.
- Alliance for Justice’s Bolder Advocacy Initiative
- The Rules of the Game: A Guide to Election-Related Activities for 501c3 Organizations
updated 1-9-2020