October 30 Training Institute for Tenants & Residents Webinar – Civic Engagement 101: The Power of Advocacy and Voting Rights
Oct 31, 2025
On October 30 at 4:00 pm ET, the Training Institute for Tenants & Residents (TITR) co-hosted a webinar on “Civic Engagement 101: The Power of Advocacy and Voting Rights” with NLIHC’s Our Homes, Our Votes nonpartisan campaign. The call focused on how tenants and housing advocates can use civic engagement to drive lasting change.
NLIHC Tenant Leader Fellow Dee Ross opened the session. NLIHC Project Manager for Our Homes, Our Votes, Tia Turner, then emphasized the power of civic participation in shaping equitable housing policy and introduced a panel of speakers leading voter engagement efforts across the nation.
Senior Staff Attorney at the Southern Poverty Law Center, Ajay Saini, gave an overview of Louisiana v. Callais, a landmark redistricting case currently before the Supreme Court of the United States. The case concerns the constitutionality of Louisiana's congressional redistricting following the 2020 census. The Court will determine whether Equal Protection concerns and protections under the Voting Rights Act (VRA) were appropriately balanced by Louisiana lawmakers in enacting two majority-Black districts in 2024. The resulting decision could implicate equal representation concerns for communities of color across the country, as well as broader civil rights doctrine.
Executive Director of Georgia ACT, Dr. Bambie Hayes-Brown, shared that Georgia ACT's efforts included partnering with housing providers and VoteRiders to help renters obtain necessary IDs; hosting a candidate forum in Atlanta; canvassing for voter engagement; collaborating with HBCUs during homecoming events; and registering eligible inmates to vote. Georgia ACT also trained volunteers, partnered with schools to register 17½-year-olds so that they could vote when they turned 18, and provided transportation to the polls. This work created a holistic, community-based model for voter empowerment.
Director of Strategic Initiatives at Housing Network of Rhode Island, Katie West, highlighted the Network's work, which partnered with affordable housing providers, resident service staff, and mobile outreach units to reach unhoused and low-income communities. Her team canvassed, tabled at community events, and ran a bilingual social media campaign to boost voter awareness around the 2024 election, which included a housing bond ballot question that mobilized local voters.
The session concluded with Our Homes, Our Votes resources, including the report, Turning Renters into Voters: Lessons in Engaging Low-income Communities, the TurboVote platform, and information on mini-grants to fund nonpartisan civic engagement work, applications for which are due November 7.
The webinar recording is available here.
The presentation slides are available here.
Upcoming webinars from Training Institute for Tenants & Residents are:
Advocacy 101—Thursday, November 13 at 4:00 pm ET
Policy 101—Thursday, January 29, 2026, at 4:00 pm ET
Equity, Race & Culture 101—Thursday, February 26, 2026, at 4:00 pm ET
You can register for the remaining webinars here.
For more information or to get involved with future sessions, contact Dee Ross at idea[email protected].