Washington, DC — This week, TIME Magazine, The Washington Post, and Kaiser Health News covered Fairness Project-backed ballot measure campaigns and the key issues headed toward a vote on Election Day. Millions of voters in dozens of states will vote on issues directly when they head to the polls, deciding on topics from abortion and Medicaid expansion to cannabis decriminalization and minimum wage increases.

TIME: Michigan Is Fighting One of the Most Significant Abortion Battles in the Country

Ballot measures also often bring in more votes than normal political races, says Kelly Hall, executive director of the Fairness Project, which works to support ballot initiatives and has advised the abortion rights campaigners in Michigan. That happened in Kansas in August. “In swing states and red states alike,” Hall says, “we have to assume that voters are coming to a ballot measure with a different frame of mind than any candidate choice, and keep open minds ourselves about who is on the table for a ballot measure.”

Kaiser Health News: Campaigning Ramps Up as South Dakota Voters Decide on Medicaid Expansion

“The Medicaid expansion campaign is backed by the progressive Fairness Project, which has supported expansion ballot campaigns across the country.”

The Washington Post: Marijuana is on the ballot in five more states this year

“The expanded use of ballot measures in recent years is a direct response to the increasing polarization of our political system,” said Kelly Hall, executive director of the Fairness Project, a group that funds and organizes state ballot measure efforts across the country. That “has led to either gridlock in Congress at the federal level or to state legislative bodies being deeply out of sync with what their constituents want.” 

Since 2016, the Fairness Project has won 24 campaigns to improve the lives of working people in America. This year, eight ballot measure campaigns backed by the Fairness Project will appear before voters at the statewide and municipal levels. Read HERE about the eight ballot measure campaigns backed by the Fairness Project and others appearing before voters in November.

back to top