The Electorette Podcast

Christine Senteno, the Cofounder and Executive Director of Advance the Electorate, discusses the importance of the Biden administration's visible support for unions, turning out the vote for Latino, Black, and unmarried women constituencies, and the importance of lived experience in political representation. Listen to All Electorette Episodes https://www.electorette.com/podcast Support the Elector...

Daria Dawson, the Political Director of America Votes, an organization that serves as the coordination hub of the progressive organizing community, discusses energizing voters for the upcoming political cycle by building a culture of strong civic participation, voter engagement and education. Listen to All Electorette Episodes https://www.electorette.com/podcast Support the Electorette Rate & Revi...

26 million American adults do not have ID—ID they need to get housing, medical care, a bank account, and other life-saving services. Following the 2016 election, Kat Calvin, the founder of Spread the Vote and Co-Founder and CEO of the Project ID Action Fund, set out to do something about it. Kat joins The Electorette to discuss her new book, American Identity in Crisis: Notes from an Accidental Ac...

Women's Equality Day is observed on August 26th in the United States, and commemorates the 1920 adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Virginia Kase Solomón, the CEO of the League of Women Voters and a lifetime champion of civil rights and social justice, joins The Electorette to discuss the history of the women's suffrage movement, the passage of the 19th Amendmen...

Alejandra Montoya-Boyer, the Director of Policy at Prosperity Now, talks about how we can create long-term economic equity through legislative policy like an expansion of the Child Tax Credit, and a broader investment in Baby Bonds. We also talk about the impact of IRS tax policy, which currently targets much of its enforcement power to the lowest-income families, as auditing the poor is relativel...

Katie Kalvoda of AAPI Victory Alliance discusses what authentic political engagement with the AAPI community looks like as the 2024 election cycle heats up. Hint: It begins with representation. Katie also discusses the nuances of misinformation and disinformation, and the ways in which it divides the AAPI community. Lastly, we discuss the impact of gun violence on the AAPI community. From This Epi...

In their groundbreaking new book MOVING THE NEEDLE: What Tight Labor Markets Do for the Poor, Katherine S. Newman and Elisabeth S. Jacobs explore what happens when jobs are plentiful and workers are hard to come by, showing how very low unemployment boosts wages at the bottom, improves benefits, lengthens job ladders, and pulls the unemployed into a booming job market. From This Episode MOVING THE...

Julie Kohler is a writer, an activist, and host of the podcast, White Picket Fence, and she joins Electorette to explore motherhood as a political force. We discuss the ways in which political narratives that center motherhood can use or manipulative the image of motherhood to advance political agendas. We also discuss the ways in which conservatives have increasingly injected violence into politi...

Author, Jennifer Wright, discusses her riveting new pop history book, MADAME RESTELL: The Life, Death, and Resurrection of Old New York's Most Fabulous, Fearless, and Infamous Abortionist. Madam Restell, overlooked feminist hero, was an immigrant living in New York City in the mid 1800s, who rose to fame (or infamy, depending on who's asking) to become the most well-known abortionist in New York,...

Chris Melody Fields Figueredo, the Executive Director of the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center or BISC, discusses how the ballot initiative process, a process by which citizens can propose to create, amend, or repeal state laws, is core to a strong democracy. We also discuss recent attacks on the ballot initiative process and who is behind them. From This Episode Ballot.org (Ballot Initiative Stra...

Kat Calvin, the founder and executive director of Spread The Vote, and Project ID discusses the state of voter ID laws, and addresses the problem of tackling the approximately 26 million eligible voters who are without the necessary ID to vote. We also discuss how the expense and red tape of obtaining ID creates a separate class of citizens, one in which those without ID are often unable to secure...

Emily Tisch Sussman, a veteran political strategist and host of the podcast, She Pivots, discusses how she handled a mid-career shift after having her first child, and how national paid leave legislation could transform the lives of working parents, and in particular, working moms. We also discuss the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which goes into effect June 2023, and lastly, what we should expec...

New interactive maps, from Power to Decide, powerfully illustrate the post-Roe abortion care landscape. Power to Decide's CEO, Dr. Raegan McDonald Mosley, and Policy VP, Rachel Fey take up through a deep-dive into that data following the Dobbs decision, and what the degradation of access has meant to those seeking abortion care. Power to Decide's Interactive Abortion Access Map Click here to view...

Christian Nunes, the President of NOW.org (National Organization for Women) discusses the crucial role that women played during the 2020 midterm elections, and the role they women will play in the upcoming 2024 election cycle. Women were "angry as hell" following the overturning of Roe, Nunes explains, driving turnout to the ballot box. We also discuss how conservatives use fear and scare tactics...

Laura Packard is the Executive Director of Healthcare Voter, an organization that holds elected officials accountable for their votes on health care. Laura is also a healthcare advocate, and cancer survivor who credits the Affordable Care Act with saving her life. In this episode, she discusses the significant improvements to the Affordable Care Act — including expanded coverage and lower costs —...

Elyssa Feder, the Executive Director of Rising Organizers, an organization focused on training new and emerging leaders to build power in their own communities for change, discusses the importance of organizers in shaping policy, and building better communities for everyone. We also discuss the outlook for the upcoming 2022 midterm elections and the role of organizers is shaping what voters care a...

Shauna Siggelkow, the Director of Digital Storytelling for the non-profit Define American, discusses their recent report analyzing anti-immigration messaging and disinformation campaigns on YouTube. The report was the culmination of three years of original research which looked at the impact, tactics, and reach of anti-immigration narratives on YouTube. Shauna discusses whose behind these campaign...

Jamia Wilson and Kate Kelly, hosts of the Ordinary Equality Podcast, join me to discuss the repeal of Roe v Wade, how the repeal with impact the upcoming midterms, and we try to answer the question, "Where do we go from here?" #midterms #midtermelections #midterm2022 #RoevWade Jamia Wilson is an award-winning feminist activist, best-selling author, speaker, and podcaster. Kate Kelly is an activist...

Professor and author, Patricia A. Turner discusses her latest book, Trash Talk: Anti-Obama Lore and Race in the Twenty-First Century, which explores the rumors, legends, and conspiracy theories that plagued President Barack Obama and his family throughout his presidency. In our conversation she examines how these patterns have persisted and what this means for American political culture. Mentioned...

International Chair for Democrats Abroad, Candice Kerestan talks about the importance of energizing the Democratic voting bloc abroad for the upcoming midterm elections. With millions of Americans living and working abroad, their vote, and their activism could make or break an election. #Midterms #MidtermElections #Midterms2022 #StateLegislatures Mentioned in this episode: Democrats Abroad Listen...

The president and CEO of Women's World Banking, Mary Ellen Iskenderian, discusses how women globally disproportionately bore the economic cost of the pandemic, and how for many women, the concept of microfinance has been an economic lifeline, especially for many women in developing countries. We also discuss her recent book, There’s Nothing Micro About a Billion Women, in which Iskenderian explore...

Democracy Forward is an organization dedicated to defending democracy in the courtroom. Their innovative legal team has taken the Trump administration to court more than 100 times, challenging unlawful policies and abuses of power. Skye Perryman, the president and CEO of Democracy Forward, discusses their current and past legal cases, including challenges to abortion bans, censorship, as well as i...

Co-founder of Sister District, Gaby Goldstein, and the Senior Political Director at Crooked Media, Shaniqua McClendon discuss winning state legislative races as a strategy for saving democracy, and how Democrats can wrest back control from conservatives who’ve used state legislatures to rule from the minority. We also discuss what level of voter engagement is required to strengthen democracy. #mid...

Meagan Hatcher-Mays, the director of democracy policy at Indivisible, discusses the recent controversial decisions from the Supreme Court, including the Dobbs decision to overturn Roe v Wade, their decision to limit the regulating power of the Environmental Protection Agency (West Virginia v. EPA), and the decision on concealed weapons in New York (New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Brue...

When Kate Dineen and her husband sought abortion care in the state of Massachusetts, following a devastating MRI revealed that the baby she was carrying had a 50% chance of dying before birth, or shortly thereafter. Dineen shares the nightmarish journey to access a later term abortion in her very blue town of Boston, even though local abortion laws should have protected her access to abortion care...