New Ballot Initiative Campaigns in Florida and Missouri
Special campaigns to inform and encourage young women voters to vote on reproductive freedom-focused initiatives
It’s almost the start of our 2024 “mail month.” On October 1st, we’ll start sending the voter turnout letters we’ve been writing and stockpiling all year. As we enter this final stretch, we are excited to bring you two new campaigns to write a special kind of voter turnout letter, focused on reproductive freedom ballot initiatives in Florida and Missouri.
In many states this year, voters will make decisions on ballot initiatives that will affect their reproductive freedoms, such as access to abortion, contraception, or IVF. Young women voters have a special stake in these issues, as their lives may be deeply affected by the outcome of these initiatives for years to come. In our new Florida and Missouri campaigns, we will encourage these voters to take advantage of this rare chance to directly voice their opinion on these critical policies.
Importantly, our Florida and Missouri letters are still nonpartisan “get out the vote” letters. Just as in our other voter turnout campaigns, these letters are focused on encouraging voters to cast their votes, not on convincing them to vote a certain way. Your letters to Florida and Missouri contain information to help voters understand the implications of their “yes” or a “no” vote on those states’ ballot initiatives, but they do not advocate for either side. When it comes to these important issues, we believe that voters should be well-informed and empowered to make their own decisions. Your “why I vote” message should still focus on creating a personal connection with the voter and presenting a compelling story about why voting matters to you, rather than convincing the voter to vote for or against the initiative. If you’d like to work more on crafting your story, please review our “Building your personal story” letter writing exercise.
You can learn more about Florida’s Amendment 4 from Floridians Protecting Freedom, and about Missouri’s Amendment 3 from Missourians for Constitutional Freedom. If you feel ready to start writing letters, head over to our Campaigns page and find Florida and Missouri under our “Social” letter section.
FAQs:
Why are we only writing to Florida and Missouri? There are other states with important reproductive freedom initiatives on the ballot this year.
Many other states that have reproductive freedom initiatives on the ballot this year are already included among Vote Forward’s 2024 letter writing campaigns, such as Arizona, Nevada, Montana, and New York. We believe (and the evidence shows) that it’s more important to reach voters who otherwise would not receive any letter from us, rather than sending two letters to the same voters.
Why do the Missouri letters have a “Paid for” disclaimer printed on the bottom? I thought I paid for printing and postage.
We’re including this language to be extra careful about complying with Missouri election laws. It is not intended to diminish your contributions as a letter writer. (If you could use assistance with printing and/or stamp costs, please check out Vote Forward’s Stamp and Letter Kit program. Don’t wait — the last day to request a kit is October 1, 2024!)
Why don’t the letters advocate for a “Yes” vote on these issues? Can I express my opinion on the initiative?
In keeping with the theme of freedom, we think that voters deserve to make up their minds about this very important issue. That’s why we include information on each ballot initiative and provide a way for voters to find out more for themselves. In your message, you are welcome to express your views about reproductive freedom and share a personal story about why this issue matters to you, but please do not tell your letter recipients how they should vote.