November 7th Elections – Why The F Do They Matter?
Many peeps only get out to vote during presidential elections (if that!). While it’s important for all of us to vote to choose the person governing this country, it’s just as important, if not more, to vote in local elections.
We’ll break it down a bit.
¿Who are we choosing during local elections?
During local elections we choose city council representatives who make decisions over the city’s budget, the local taxes we pay, some education programs, public safety and transportation and other things that directly affect our daily lives.
Remember the ONE PHX ID campaign for La Phoenikera to have its own valid ID that anyone, regardless of their immigration status, could use? It was our city council representatives that were in charge of approving the initiative.
In local elections we also choose our public school board members. It’s the members of these boards that decide how to spend district funds. They are also responsible for hiring district superintendents who in turn hire the principals of every school in their district. School board members have a huge impact on the quality of the education our kids get and we have the ability to decide who they are.
It’s in local elections that you can determine if your kids’ school district will receive more funding. This is through the approval of bonds and overrides, which are initiatives funded by temporary property taxes. These help provide more funds to school districts and community colleges.
These are just some examples of the public offices and initiatives that we have the power to influence if we vote at a local level.
¿When are the local elections?
The next local elections are Tuesday, November 7 and this time they are exclusively to approve bonds and overrides for different school districts.
Here you can see a list of the districts that have bonds and overrides on the ballot in these elections.
¿Why is it important to vote in these elections?
If we all get out to vote, we can guarantee that our kids’ schools will have the funds necessary to operate appropriately and offer a high quality education. This is even more important for districts serving low income students and kids of color.
Arizona’s education system currently does not receive adequate funding to cover all the needs of our schools and this has become evident in many ways. One of them is the state’s teacher shortage. This shortage is in part because Arizona teachers are the worst paid across the country.
In LaPhoenikera.com we believe that education is the only way we can guarantee the prosperity of our communities and we’re committed to keep you informed about these elections.
In the next few days we’ll publish articles with more information about the importance of the November 7th elections and the impact we can make if we all get out to vote. Let’s show people that La Phoenikera votes!
