Primary season is picking back up! Be prepared to vote for the candidate that will best represent you, while staying up to date with the latest additions to Vote Smart's database! This Weekly Wrap-Up discusses the August 7th primaries, biographical research for all candidates in states with up-coming primaries, and statements from 3D-Printed guns to the National Defense Authorization Act. Read it all and MORE below!
MAJOR EVENTS FROM THE WEEK:
VoteEasy Now Live!
Not sure who to vote for in your states primary election? Does the research seem overwhelming? Fear no more; Our candidate matching tool, VoteEasy, is live! Click HERE to see which candidates from your state align most closely with your political opinions. August 7th Primaries
Michigan, Missouri, Washington, and Kansas have primary elections on Tuesday, August 7th, 2018! We have completed full biographical research on all your Congressional candidates. See below for links to find voter registration and polling place information for your state! 3D Gun Blueprints
On Tuesday a federal judge halted the distribution of blueprints for 3D-printable guns. Wondering what your representatives had to say about it? See all Congressional statements on gun issues HERE.
ELECTIONS: By Pete and the Elections Research team Endorsements: Vote Smart has released more than 13,500 endorsements so far this year! See who is really backing your candidates HERE.
If you would like to see how your representatives or candidates are rated by Special Interest Groups, check out your candidate's ratings page, as shown by the example HERE.
State level endorsements for states with elections on Tuesday can be found by filtering for your state and the issues that matter most to you on this page HERE!
Ratings:
We have released over 60,000 ratings for politicians so far this year! They are listed on the Interest Groups page of the website, which you can browse HERE!
You can filter these rating scorecards by both STATE AND ISSUE, which allows you to easily find how interest groups are rating your representatives based on the subjects that matter to you.
Political Courage Test & Elections Info:
What is the Political Courage Test? Find out HERE!
The Primary election season starts up again next week! There are 18 states that have yet to have their 2018 Primary elections, and 14 of them are happening in August. You can keep track of election dates using our downloadable elections calendar on this page of the website: Downloadable Election Calendar HERE
Michigan, Missouri, Washington, and Kansas have primary elections on Tuesday, August 7th, 2018! Our researchers have completed full biographical research on all Congressional candidates, which you can find below: - Michigan Candidates
- Kansas Candidates Not registered to vote in your state with an up-coming primary election? Find Voter Registration to the August 7th Primary States HERE: - Michigan Voter Registration
- Kansas Voter Registration Our staff has administrated the Political Courage Test to all Congressional candidates in Tuesday's primaries. Here are a few highlights!
Michigan
Percent of candidates to take the PCT: 23%
Number of answers from the candidates: 220
Number of answers determined from our research: 422
Missouri
Percent of candidates to take the PCT: 35%
Number of answers from the candidates: 371
Number of answers determined from our research: 374
Washington
Percent of candidates to take the PCT: 38%
Number of answers from the candidates: 458
Number of answers determined from our research: 436
Kansas Percent of candidates to take the PCT: 38% Number of answers from the candidates: 138 Number of answers determined from our research: 178 Do your candidates have the courage to represent you?
Congressional Candidate Lists:
Vote Smart has released congressional candidate lists released for all 41 states that have released certified ballots for 2018 Primary Elections. These candidates are all found on the elections page of the website as searchable here.
All 49 states with Primary elections have released their candidate lists! Our researchers have completed full biographical research for all Congressional candidates in these races. These candidates are all found on the elections page of the website HERE.
OFFICIALS:
By Annie and the Officials Research team
Public Statements:
Vote Smart added 2,330 statements to its database this week! Find them all through targeted key-word searches.
Some Newsworthy topics include:
Key Votes:
There were nine key state votes, and only two Key Votes in Congress this week. Read all about the Congressional votes by following the bolded links below!
- HR 6199: Restoring Access to Medication and Modernizing Health Savings Accounts Act of 2018, which repeals certain restrictions that limit costs for medications paid out of the health savings account for certain drugs and products.
- HR 6311: Increasing Access to Lower Premium Plans and Expanding Health Savings Accounts Act of 2018, which modifies the definition of qualified health plans.
UP NEXT:
The next major primary election in on August 7th, which leads us into the bulk of the midterm election season. If you are in Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, or Washington: Know who your candidates are and what they stand for. Use our tools, including VoteEasy, so that you can go to the polls and VOTE SMART!
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