321ACTION: November 4, 2024
Tomorrow is Election Day! If you haven’t already voted, make sure you have a plan to do so. Check out the FAQ in JWI’s election guide for more information.
On and after Election Day, be prepared not to know the final outcome for several days, if not weeks. Election workers will need to count each and every ballot, and there are rigorous processes in place to ensure that the election results are accurate. These processes are critical to our democratic process, but they take time.
During this election, we have seen unprecedented levels of misinformation. That may continue after Election Day, as votes are being tabulated and results are being certified. Always make sure you get your information about elections directly from the most reputable source — in this case, your state Secretary of State’s office or state Board of Elections. You can find contact information for your state and local election office here.
Ready to make a difference?
Here are three ways to get started:
3. Money Matters
Achieving long-term economic security is key to personal freedom and independence. Women’s economic empowerment is one of the key areas we look at when we are deciding for whom to vote. Women working full-time in the United States are still paid $0.84 for every $1.00 paid to men, and women of color are paid even less.
In many families, women are expected to both work full-time and shoulder the bulk of caregiving responsibilities, including caregiving for children and for older adults. Women face discrimination in hiring, in promotion, and in compensation. And despite requiring specialized knowledge and skills, jobs typically associated with women such as teaching and nursing are undervalued and under-compensated.
JWI is committed to advancing economic independence and long-term security for every woman. Below are ways to determine whether or not a candidate supports policies that will help achieve this goal:
2. Learn the Green Flags
The following policy positions indicate a candidate supports women's economic empowerment:
• Supports policies that ensure paid sick and safe leave, vacation time, and parental leave for all employees
• Supports increasing the minimum wage to a living wage, including for tipped workers and those with disabilities
• Supports increasing compensation for teachers, nurses, and individuals employed in the care economy
• Supports universal access to comprehensive healthcare
• Supports job training programs, with an emphasis on increasing women’s participation in well-paying professions that do not require a college education
• Supports access to free or low-cost high-quality childcare
1. Learn the Red Flags
The following policy positions indicate a candidate may not support women's economic empowerment:
• Calls for union busting and so-called “right to work” legislation, which seeks to undermine collective bargaining
• Emphasizes “personal responsibility” and blames low income people for structural inequality
• Supports policies that limit access to safety net programs, including work requirements, funding cuts, transforming entitlement programs into block grants, and limiting access by citizen children with non-citizen parents
• Claims that tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy create jobs
+ In case you missed it...
Abortion bans enacted following the Supreme Court’s disastrous Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision overturning five decades of abortion-related jurisprudence are killing women.
Read about the tragic deaths of Josseli Barnica and Nevaeh Crain in Texas as part of ProPublica’s ongoing reporting about women killed by abortion bans.