Will Housing Affordability Be Addressed in the Next Democratic Presidential Debates?

On July 30 and 31, the 2020 Democratic presidential candidates will be back on the national stage for the second round of nationally televised debates. The NLIHC-led Our Homes, Our Votes: 2020 nonpartisan candidate and voter engagement project calls on the debate moderators to raise the critically important issue of housing affordability in the U.S. and for the presidential candidates to tell us what they will do about it.

The issue of affordable housing is of the utmost importance to families across the country, and voters are demanding answers on the campaign trail as never before. According to a recent national poll commissioned by NLIHC, 85% of people in America believe that ensuring everyone has a safe, accessible and affordable home should be a top national priority, and 8 in 10 want major action from Congress and the White House. Seventy-six percent are more likely to vote for a candidate with a detailed plan on making housing more affordable.

The June presidential debates were a missed opportunity, however, as the moderators failed to ask any questions on the nation’s affordable housing crisis, and only a few of the more than 20 candidates mentioned it in their responses.

In advance of the next debates, here are three things you can do today to help get affordable housing on the agenda this election cycle:

  1. Learn what each of the candidates has said so far on affordable housing by checking out the candidate profiles on the Our Homes, Our Votes website. We are keeping track of everything candidates are saying and proposing related to affordable housing in America. (Be sure to let us know if we have missed something!)
  2. Use social media to call on candidates to take strong positions on affordable housing. Use #OurHomesOurVotes2020 in your posts and tag @OurHomesVotes on Twitter or @OHOV2020 on Facebook so we can amplify your message!
  3. Use the Voter and Candidate Engagement Tool Kit to plan events and candidate interactions during the primaries to show the candidates that voters need to hear from them about their affordable housing solutions.