Endorsement Transparency

Who am I supporting?

For the first time in my life, I have posted endorsements.

Over 30 of them.

You can find them on my voting group, Election Day is Every Tuesday, and I would REALLY appreciate it if you would sign up too. The more people that sign up, the more things I can do like this.

But I wanna explain a bit of my methodology for those who are interested, cause I have honestly never done this before.

First, these are all races I can vote in. I don’t feel comfortable making endorsements where I don’t personally know what’s at stake and what the situation is in the district.

I don’t really get involved in primaries, if I can help it, because I don’t know the circumstances of your districts. I only know my own.

I also don’t claim to know everything. I did a lot of research. I spoke with a lot of people, but I won’t say I’m 100% right. My endorsement of someone is based on the information I could find given the time I had. I stand by my endorsements, but I just can’t know for certain that I chose the right candidate.

I think that’s important to say off the bat. I’m not perfect and my endorsements aren’t either.

There are also times where I say, in the endorsement itself, that the other choice is great too. Just cause I’m supporting someone, doesn’t mean they’re the only candidate worth supporting (in some cases, some of these candidates are real doozies though).

I also tried to give my sources, you know me. Some candidates I’m endorsing solely based on an org that already endorsed them, or maybe the description given in a local paper. So, you might find better information that helps you figure out you like someone else instead.

But that’s the thing. My goal is to be a resource more than a cheat sheet. I want to encourage you to do your own research and find your own sources and hopefully, I’m one of many you look at.

Yesterday, in the Georgia Supreme Court races, we saw what happens when voters aren’t educated. Most voters think that all races are partisan. So they assume if someone’s on their partisan ballot they must be a Democrat and vote for the incumbent cause it’s easier.

That’s not because they don’t know how to read or don’t want to know more, it’s because they don’t know what they don’t know.

I’m hoping, at the very least, my guide helps you figure out which questions you DO need to be asking.

And even if you’re not from California, maybe you’ll find it helpful to understand how I come to these conclusions.

I also recommend not figuring out who and what to vote for alone. It’s important to have someone else to bounce ideas off of that might Google using slightly different wording than you or has a different values hierarchy. You might think the environment is the most important issue, while for them it might be trans rights. Getting both your perspectives can make a huge impact in your final decision.

And don’t be afraid to change your mind. As long as you haven’t turned in your ballot yet, nothing is set in stone. I was gonna vote for one judge and then read a bit more and realized that I REALLY don’t want that person anywhere near a courtroom, so I change my mind.

Our goal is to make the best choices that will bring the most progress or reduce the most harm — given the information we have. That’s it. That’s all we can do.

So, I hope my endorsements help you vote. I hope you sign up to Election Day is Every Tuesday so you get a text with my weekly election guide.

And most importantly, please remember:

Your vote is your voice and that voice is your superpower, but ONLY when you use it!