NLIHC released on September 5 the Fall 2024 issue of Tenant Talk, our semiannual newsletter designed to engage residents in housing advocacy. The new issue, Tenant Talk: Voting as Collective Action, features articles on the importance of elections in tenant communities. Download a digital copy at right, or register to receive a free physical copy in the mail! Digital copies will soon be available in Spanish.
Census data reveal that low-income people vote at lower rates than those in higher income brackets. This pattern is due in large part to long-standing barriers, such as difficulties taking time off from work to vote, obtaining legal identification, and accessing transportation to polling places. In addition, racial and other forms of discrimination, as well as increased exposure to misinformation about voting, further hinder voter participation. People experiencing homelessness, returning citizens, and survivors of disasters face especially tough barriers to voting. These challenges are exacerbated by efforts in some states to suppress the votes of low-income tenants, who are disproportionately people of color, young people, senior citizens, and people with disabilities.
Higher voter turnout among low-income households is essential for convincing policymakers to address the housing needs of the lowest-income tenants. But achieving the goal of higher turnout is challenging, and we cannot do it alone – we must act collectively! The new edition of Tenant Talk explores how advocates and others can best ensure that low-income tenants make their voices heard at the polls.
The new edition brings together a spectrum of perspectives on why voting matters and a range of nonpartisan resources to help ensure higher voter turnout among low-income renters. Articles cover topics like the long struggle for voting rights, voting while experiencing homelessness, civic engagement beyond voting, and NLIHC's nonpartisan Our Homes, Our Votes campaign. The edition also offers tools for nonpartisan voter engagement, ideas for Get Out the Vote efforts, and tips for how tenants and residents can engage candidates, as well as updates on NLIHC’s policy work and new research.
If you have registered in the past for a physical copy of Tenant Talk, we ask that you please register again. The registration form will close on September 12, or whenever the stock of available copies of Tenant Talk is exhausted – whichever comes first.
