#WOKEVOTERSTL

Woke Voter STL is a grassroots campaign to build community power and strengthen Black political participation in local, state and federal elections by providing year-round voter education and engagement, connecting key policy issues to our lived experiences, and mobilizing voters to use their collective power to usher in evidenced-based policies and practices to transform our communities.  

When Action STL established this campaign in 2016, there was not a grassroots organization committed to educating communities on the impacts of local institutions and the role elections play in improving our material conditions. This lack of consistent engagement could be seen in the low voter turnout in wards that are predominantly Black. The long-term impact of an unengaged community is an unresponsive government and unaccountable leaders. Action St. Louis sees the Woke Voter STL campaign as one long-term intervention to this problem. 

Since launching #WokeVoterSTL:

• Action St. Louis has held 7 debates engaging over 50,000 residents on the importance of local elections.

• Action St. Louis has produced city-wide voter guides that have been used in over 25 community events and viewed over 30,000 times. 

• Action St. Louis has knocked over 200,000 doors, engaging directly with Black voters on the importance of elections and organized to support the passage of statewide ballot initiatives that raised the Minimum Wage (2018) and expanded Medicaid (2020).

• Action St. Louis has held over 10 community brunches engaging young Black voters on the importance of local elections.