Candidate Engagement & Questionnaires
Now that you have taken a look at some of the issues that you care about as a Recovery Voter, the next move is to work to engage candidates running for office to see if they acknowledge the issues you are passionate about.
Here is a step-by-step guide in engaging candidates.
Know who is running for office. You can go here, click on your state, and research who is already elected, as well as those currently running for office along with their campaign websites (if available).
Research the candidate’s campaign website to see where they stand on the issues. Do they address anything related to recovery? You can also look at biographies, public statements, and past voting records of those who have served in public office here simply by putting in an elected officials name.
If they do not respond, be persistent. If they are asking for your vote and others that care about recovery), let them know how they get it. Ask them to publicly state their position on issues to social media or their campaign website. This will help others to Vote Recovery.
Engage candidates at public events. Many candidates look for local events to stop in at, and also host their own town hall type of event and take questions from locals. Look up the candidate’s upcoming schedule on their website and plan to ask them a question about the issue you care about. You can even engage Candidates in a Vote Recovery Town Hall meeting.
We found some great sample questions around Recovery Issues like Access to Health Services, criminal justice reform, and race issues in this Voter Guide
Some nonprofit organizations may do some work with voter education around recovery issues and put that information online. We found a survey for candidates here where you can read the questions the organization asked, as well as read the replies by candidates like this one running for office. We encourage you to see if any groups in your state already do candidate surveys to help you to Vote Recovery.