Policy Brief
By:
Some politicians have enacted measures in recent years to make voting harder and to reduce participation among certain groups. Others have sought to counteract that voter suppression by implementing laws to make voting easier, such as same-day or automatic registration. There is another antidote to the effort to reduce participation: lifting up worker organizations. This is especially important to understand given the ways in which powerful individuals and groups have sought to weaken unions because of their political strength representing American workers.
In this report, the author first explains efforts to weaken unions and the voice of working people; then what the decline of unions and union membership has meant for participation; next, Wang looks at the data showing the positive effects unions have on voter participation; and finally, she suggests how going forward we can reform the laws and how labor is structured such that it not only continues to facilitate voter participation, but even enhances it.
Commentary
Election night 2026 produced a remarkable roll call of historic firsts. From the first Black woman elected governor of a U.S. state to the first Muslim elected to the Senate, voters broke barriers across state and party lines.
Podcast
On this week’s episode of the Terms of Engagement podcast, co-hosts Archon Fung and Stephen Richer welcome Maria McFarland Sánchez-Moreno, CEO of RepresentUs, to discuss what accountability could look like in the next two years.
Podcast
On this week of the Terms of Engagement podcast we have a special Post-Election Day Discussion with co-hosts Professor Archon Fung and Stephen Richer.
Policy Brief
This policy brief examines how states can strengthen partnerships between postsecondary institutions and state election officials to build sustainable civic infrastructure.
Commentary
Election night 2026 produced a remarkable roll call of historic firsts. From the first Black woman elected governor of a U.S. state to the first Muslim elected to the Senate, voters broke barriers across state and party lines.
Commentary
This overview maps the technology policy themes from the 2026 US midterm elections, drawing on local ballot measures and proposals from newly elected officials.
