Project Aims to Empower Local Voters - July 21, 2015
A new online forum for local candidates in Hancock County,
Mississippi may be the first of its kind in the state, said volunteers who
created the website.
According to ServeHancock.com, the community project aims to help voters “make decisions based on information instead of advertising.”
In addition to offering lists of candidates, district maps, and voter information, the mobile-friendly website features an online forum. Twenty-eight local candidates running for office in the Gulf Coast county were given a free opportunity to reach voters through the site.
The forum consists of two parts. Part One gave candidates a chance to introduce themselves. Part Two offered forum participants an opportunity to answer a list of questions. Part Two responses were posted on July 21st.
Serve Hancock was created by volunteers associated with The Fourth Ward Cleaver, a monthly online magazine focusing on life in the cities of Bay St. Louis and Waveland in Hancock County. Both cities are located on Mississippi’s Gulf Coast.
Cleaver editor, Ellis Anderson, said volunteer team members have been working on the project since early 2015.
“Everyone involved has been very excited,” said Anderson. “The idea of having a website that gives local candidates a non-partisan, level playing field sparked our imaginations and kept us enthused throughout the long process.”
She added that while gathering information for the site, the volunteers themselves became better educated about the local political process.
“We all considered ourselves active citizens. Yet, for instance, none of us had ever even read job descriptions for these offices. It was fascinating. So we ended up posting information like job descriptions and salaries too.”
Ana Balka, Cleaver writer and one of the Serve Hancock volunteers, agrees that the volunteer experience proved to be an educational one as well.
“I don’t think most of us realized before how important local elections really are,” Balka said. “These officials have incredible power to impact the quality of our lives on a daily basis. And in local small town elections, one vote can make all the difference.”
Balka points to a 2014 Alderman’s race in Waveland where the election was decided by the toss of a coin because the vote was tied.
Although only about half the candidates who were invited participated in Part One - and not all those chose to answer the questions in Part Two - the response exceeded the team’s initial expectations.
“We knew going in that this is a long ball project,” said Anderson, “But we have to start somewhere. The goal is to empower voters through information. We hope that one day forums like this will be an indispensable part of the election process - and make it easier to engage younger voters.”
“Who knows, maybe we are the first in the state, in the South, or anywhere for that matter,” she said. “But we certainly hope we’re not the last.”
According to ServeHancock.com, the community project aims to help voters “make decisions based on information instead of advertising.”
In addition to offering lists of candidates, district maps, and voter information, the mobile-friendly website features an online forum. Twenty-eight local candidates running for office in the Gulf Coast county were given a free opportunity to reach voters through the site.
The forum consists of two parts. Part One gave candidates a chance to introduce themselves. Part Two offered forum participants an opportunity to answer a list of questions. Part Two responses were posted on July 21st.
Serve Hancock was created by volunteers associated with The Fourth Ward Cleaver, a monthly online magazine focusing on life in the cities of Bay St. Louis and Waveland in Hancock County. Both cities are located on Mississippi’s Gulf Coast.
Cleaver editor, Ellis Anderson, said volunteer team members have been working on the project since early 2015.
“Everyone involved has been very excited,” said Anderson. “The idea of having a website that gives local candidates a non-partisan, level playing field sparked our imaginations and kept us enthused throughout the long process.”
She added that while gathering information for the site, the volunteers themselves became better educated about the local political process.
“We all considered ourselves active citizens. Yet, for instance, none of us had ever even read job descriptions for these offices. It was fascinating. So we ended up posting information like job descriptions and salaries too.”
Ana Balka, Cleaver writer and one of the Serve Hancock volunteers, agrees that the volunteer experience proved to be an educational one as well.
“I don’t think most of us realized before how important local elections really are,” Balka said. “These officials have incredible power to impact the quality of our lives on a daily basis. And in local small town elections, one vote can make all the difference.”
Balka points to a 2014 Alderman’s race in Waveland where the election was decided by the toss of a coin because the vote was tied.
Although only about half the candidates who were invited participated in Part One - and not all those chose to answer the questions in Part Two - the response exceeded the team’s initial expectations.
“We knew going in that this is a long ball project,” said Anderson, “But we have to start somewhere. The goal is to empower voters through information. We hope that one day forums like this will be an indispensable part of the election process - and make it easier to engage younger voters.”
“Who knows, maybe we are the first in the state, in the South, or anywhere for that matter,” she said. “But we certainly hope we’re not the last.”
Our volunteer crew included Larry Jaubert, Ana Balka, Karen West, and in Part One, LiLi Stahler and Donald Murphy. Thanks also to the community leaders who pitched in with ideas, feedback, and encouragement!