Wisconsin
Black Leaders Organizing for Communities (BLOC) centers underrepresented Black voices in Wisconsin to ensure a high quality of life and access to opportunities for members of the Black community. BLOC is the only Black-led political organization in Wisconsin, and its year-round field program is critical for building trust and engaging Black voters in election years. BLOC empowers Black leaders with the tools, training, and resources they need to organize and to ensure that their issues, concerns, and values are represented at all levels of government. BLOC has a strong media presence, with ongoing media coverage about its work engaging Black voters in Wisconsin.
Voces de la Frontera, Wisconsin’s leading immigrant rights organization, is a membership-based community organization led by low-wage workers, immigrants, and youth, whose mission is to protect and expand civil rights and workers’ rights through community organizing, leadership development, and empowerment. Its statewide relational organizing initiative, Voces por el Voto, targets new or infrequent voters. Voces’ youth arm, Youth Empowered in the Struggle (YES) has been recognized nationally for its powerful, multiracial youth organizing since it was founded in 2003.
Recent Achievements
BLOC and Voces de la Frontera are working in the context of a state where gerrymandering and voter suppression have made their work both more challenging and more necessary than ever.
They have educated and activated tens of thousands of voters who contributed to important statewide wins in 2022 and 2023:
Reelection of Democratic Governor Tony Evers
Reelection of Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul
Reelection of Democratic Secretary of State Doug LaFollette
Election of Democratically-aligned Janet Protasiewicz to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, ending Republican domination and creating a 4-3 liberal majority
What makes Wisconsin crucial in 2024
Wisconsin is a crucial swing state for the presidential election; Biden won there in 2020 with only a 0.6% margin
Reelecting Wisconsin Democratic U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin is essential for Democrats to hold the U.S. Senate
Wisconsin’s gerrymandered state legislative maps have been redrawn, creating opportunities for newly competitive seats in the state Assembly and Senate
What Flip the Vote’s support means for 2024
With ongoing support from Flip the Vote, BLOC will be able to continue expanding its Ambassador program, allowing deeper engagement with potential voters. BLOC will be able to grow its work in the Racine and Kenosha areas which, along with Milwaukee, have significant Black populations and are key for statewide victory. Additional support will also allow BLOC to recruit, train, and support a pipeline of candidates for local and statewide electoral office. Flip the Vote can help BLOC fight for a democracy in which all voices are heard, by overcoming voter suppression and working to restore the right to vote to incarcerated and formerly incarcerated Wisconsin citizens.
Flip the Vote’s support of Voces de la Frontera will enable them to expand geographically and reach more new and infrequent voters. With additional funding, they will be able to knock on approximately 200,000 doors throughout the state, ensuring multiple contacts in key areas. With additional funds, Voces can supplement this personal outreach with a strong media presence and Spanish-language advertising across multiple platforms (digital, radio, television, and print) targeting strategic audiences to reinforce the connection between the issues they care about, the progress made, the importance of voting, and endorsements for critical races.
“We need to make sure that our community is represented, heard, and centered in policies directly impacting our community. Sometimes getting involved civically can be daunting, frustrating, or intimidating. If we are able to meet folks where they are at and have meaningful conversations, we can move Milwaukee forward.”