Published: May 26, 2020
History was made in North Omaha! All eyes now on the general election.
Four years ago, in 2016, North Omaha voted at an abysmal 6% during the primary. With effective collaboration and purposeful coordination, the community responded in 2020 and generated a 22% turnout.
The nearly four times increase is substantial and deserves to be celebrated. North Omaha residents, you made it happen!
Many individuals and organizations should be recognized for their efforts to inform and mobilize the community. Preston Love, Jr and North Omaha Votes Matter. Precious McKesson with NONA. Sergio Sosa with the Heartland Workers Center. Kimara Snipe with Nebraska Civic Engagement Table. The League of Women Voters, Pastors and Faith Leaders, and others helped to produce the increased turnout.
All of the candidates that ran for office should also be celebrated. Omaha had one of the most diverse slates of candidates in the history of the city. There were African-Americans and other people of color on the ballot in just about every major race.
The newly formed Black/North Omaha Media Collaborative also played a key role. Radio stations 101.3, 95.7 and 100.3 all featured candidates and discussed key issues on their stations. The Omaha Star and NoiseOmaha all provided critical information to residents.
Another major piece of the success was the approval to make vote by mail an option for all residents. The election commission led very effectively by Brian Kruse and Chris Carithers, sent vote by mail post cards to all Douglas County residents. Kruse and Carithers have proven to be very community minded and have made themselves very accessible in all parts of the city.
As a result, Douglas County also set records for voter turnout in a primary election. 85% of the votes cast in the 2020 primary election were by mail.
If the method produces higher voter participation, it should definitely be considered and added as a practical and measurable solution. The same process should be implemented going forward for every election.
In addition to this group of the change makers, the strong slate of candidates and the vote by mail model, special recognition should also go to Sal Issaka and the Omaha Housing Authority.
With the issues presented by the Coronavirus, the election commission was forced to relocate a number of polling centers and move them away from their traditional locations in the OHA Towers. The change was made to protect the health of seniors and other residents in the towers.
The community response led by Preston Love and Sal Issaka mobilized quickly to innovate and create a workable solution. This collective group worked together in a joint effort with Kimara Snipes in South Omaha and the election commission to generate positive results. As reported by Preston Love, Jr, using the vote by mail option, all of the towers experienced an increase in votes. Overall, the votes from tower residents increased by two and a half times previous years. Evans Tower had a dramatic 80% increase from 2016 to 2020.
The Omaha Housing Authority Vote By Mail (VBM) mobilization effort was a collaboration of multiple organizations, including Black Votes Matter Institute of Community Engagement, Nebraska Civic Engagement Table, the South Omaha Neighborhood Alliance, League of Women Voters of Greater Omaha and NONA-North Omaha Neighborhood Alliance.
The North Omaha community should be proud of its turnout for the primary. Yet, there’s more work ahead. The turnout county wide was 37%, so there’s still a gap that must be closed.
Come November, North Omaha must respond in a strong way to assure their voice is heard. The community must also be vigilant regarding misinformation and voter suppression efforts.
During the 2008 and 2012 elections with Barack Obama on the ballot, North Omaha generated very high voter turnout. With the importance of the upcoming election, it will be urgent and critical for North Omaha to reach the same level of participation.
There’s a strong likelihood that the Coronavirus will still play a major role. The state and county should be prepared to once again offer vote by mail as a reliable and safe option.
Congratulations North Omaha! Now, let’s set a new record during the general election in November. Get involved. Register to vote. Vote by mail. Become a volunteer for a campaign. Make contributions to your candidate.
History is calling. Together, we can set new records for voter participation in the general election.
