This year, electric cooperatives across the country are working to buck the trend of diminishing votes from rural America by fanning out across the country to encourage co-op members to register to vote, and get to the polls on Election Day.
The Co-ops Vote campaign is a nonpartisan effort to educate rural voters on issues that affect them, and then encourage those voters to choose candidates that they believe will take a favorable stand on those issues.
“We want to get people excited about voting,” said Laura Vogel, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) senior political affairs advisor.
Co-ops Vote is a national initiative, with boots on the ground in states where rural voters can make a real impact. NRECA’s efforts also will focus on critical issues for electric co-ops. They include broadband service, federal regulations on water, renewable energy, LIHEAP, cybersecurity and hiring veterans.
NRECA interim CEO Jeffrey Connor said, “We electrified the countryside. We unified our diverse members. And we made electricity a great ambassador for America around the globe. We’ve always chosen to do the right thing over the easy thing. So now we can continue that tradition by doing something to change the tone … something to make our country politically strong again.”
Visit the Co-ops Vote web site, WWW.VOTE.COOP. The web site will give you information on your elected officials and candidates, the voter registration process, election dates and locations, and background about eight key co-op issues including: rural broadband access, hiring and honoring veterans, low-income energy assistance, cybersecurity, water regulation, rural health care access, affordable and reliable energy, and renewable energy. 
Source: ECT Cathy Cash
