Voting resources to use before casting your vote

Voters interested in researching candidates and issues before casting their ballot are tasked with finding impartial resources for reliable, accurate and nonpartisan information. Although impartiality in elections may seem like a failing task, below are some helpful voting resources to use in researching candidates and issues on your ballot.

Ballotpedia

Ballotpedia describes itself as the “digital encyclopedia of American politics” and “the nation’s premier source for unbiased information on elections, politics and policy.” Founded in 2007, the website is sponsored by the Lucy Burns Institute, a nonpartisan and nonprofit organization in Middleton, Wis.

The self-described goal of the voting site is to inform people about political candidates and incumbents as well as ballot measures by providing objective and nonpartisan information at all levels of government. According to Ballotpedia.org, the website covers local, state, federal and territorial politics and is firmly committed to neutrality. Content includes neutral, accurate and verifiable information on government officials and the offices they hold, political issues and public policy, elections and candidates.

The resource also provides an early look at what will be on your local ballot. Additionally, it offers an app for both Apple and Android devices called My Vote Ballotpedia.

Vote Smart

Vote Smart is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates and elected officials.

Primary areas of focus are background information, issue positions, voting records, campaign finances, interest group ratings, speeches and public statements.

Founded in 1992, VoteSmart.org has tools to help you “find your political soulmate” via its “Vote Easy” research feature and to prepare yourself for big elections like the one coming up Nov. 5.

According to its website, Vote Smart’s mission is “to provide free, factual, unbiased information on candidates and elected officials.”

Fact Check

Another helpful resource is FactCheck.org.

It is a self-described nonpartisan, nonprofit “consumer advocate” for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics. Fact Check describes itself as monitoring the factual accuracy of what is said by major political players in the form of television ads, debates, speeches, interviews and news releases.

The site has won multiple Webby Awards in the Politics category and is a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.

OpenSecrets

OpenSecrets is described as a nonpartisan, independent and nonprofit research source for getting a good idea about money’s influence on Washington, D.C., lawmakers. The site is run by the Center for Responsive Politics.

OpenSecrets touts itself as the “most comprehensive resource for campaign contributions, lobbying data and analysis available anywhere.”

The site provides information on which companies and lobbyist groups contribute to which candidates. OpenSecrets.org also provides detail on local contributions. Information is available for who is doing the giving and who is receiving. LL

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