In 1864 only White Male citizens were allowed to vote in Arizona — Would that have included you?

According to the law in Arizona in 1864, “every white male citizen of the United States and/or white male citizen of Mexico who had become a citizen under the Gadsden Purchase was entitled to vote for any election.” That left a lot of people out.

The question is, how did we get to a place in society where more groups of people are now eligible to vote in 2024 and yet many still don’t vote?

Here’s my take on what is happening.

First, I’d like to thank those of you who have reached out over the last few weeks and I agree with the common thread: We live in interesting times. Confronted with a collection of challenges unprecedented in scope and origin, I’m not at all surprised that the USTomorrow community is focused on both the steep path ahead and the need for extraordinary leadership to guide our nation — and the world — forward.

Extraordinary times don’t necessarily deliver the leadership we need, however, and the new theater of American politics leaves us sitting witness to the most fractious (and fractured) political season in modern history. The stage has so many terrible actors, having no sense of history or their place in it, using any available method to gather limelight for themselves and retain razor thin majorities for fringe interests.

No time is being wasted in leveraging those majorities while they exist. Many of us are dumbfounded by the apparent disconnect between policy action and public sentiment. The U.S. Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe vs. Wade and the Arizona Supreme Court’s reversion to the cultural sensitivities of 1864 are front and center in this imbalance.

But keep in mind this is no accident. For decades before the recent MAGA and Tea Party interest, far right groups were better organized than their far left counterparts and conducted smart, effective work in policy venues ranging from local school boards to the U.S. Supreme Court. And at the city level, far left interests were busy for the last 20 years creating new experiments in democracy that often substituted public safety in the name of personal freedom.

The results have been clear in policy venues across the board, leaving most Americans in the middle confused, disenchanted, and exhausted by the overreach and lack of responsiveness of their elected officials. Driving the middle away from the process is the second line of victory for these hyper partisan interests. (Hence, why too many people think their vote doesn’t matter)

Beyond the obvious suggestion to engage early in the process, before the only choice is between fringe candidates and issues, I can also suggest a silver lining.

Rep. James Clyburn, the venerable Congressman, community organizer, and civil rights leader from South Carolina, once advised me that politics is like a pendulum: it eventually and always swings the other way. I trust his experience and admire his pragmatism but know that, with as many thumbs as we have on the scale, we also need to follow his example and do the work necessary to deliver the difference we need.

I believe that the race to deliver a new quasi religious far right foundation to American life — despite the disconnect with the American people — is an acknowledgment that the pendulum continues to swing and that the window to deliver these policy victories is closing. On the far left, there are many groups advocating for a support network that is all too often absent of any real personal responsibility. Even San Francisco just passed two ballot initiatives that were considered more conservative than years past. (Both dealt with safety which drew on bi-partisan support)

As a combat veteran, I can’t help but be disappointed that our country’s political and policy institutions are more focused on pulling apart than pulling together as we have in other times of national crisis.

Two quick action items to consider:

First, as the elections loom, we’re hearing from more candidates and campaigns seeking advice on engaging a center constituency that might provide, not only a victory, but a certain degree of independence from America’s compromised political industrial complex. If you know anyone who fits that bill, send them our way. We hope to introduce some of these American mavericks to the UST community as the cycle matures.

Second, voting and registering to vote is more important than ever. For those interested in a nonpartisan voting registration/motivation/education effort, reach out to your county League of Women Voters to learn about their activities and volunteer if you are so inclined. Most LWV are out in their communities registering voters and, even more importantly, educating voters on the voting process (IDs needed, how to use a voting machine, etc.) and motivating people to become lifetime voters.

What do you think? What are you seeing out there?

Take care,

Joseph

Joseph Kopser

Co-Founder of USTomorrow