Groundbreaking new website ‘IssueVoter’ holds pols accountable, makes voices heard

Brooklyn Leadership at Helm of Project

January 31, 2017 By Scott Enman Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Founder of IssueVoter Maria Yuan. Photo courtesy of Maria Yuan

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An innovative group of New Yorkers, many of whom are Brooklynites, are revolutionizing the way in which citizens are getting involved in the political process through a website called IssueVoter.

IssueVoter is a nonpartisan online tool, which was launched on Nov. 9, the day after the election. It allows Americans to easily see which bills are being voted on in Congress and to voice their support or opposition to the bills. The site summarizes and simplifies complex bills by adding pros and cons, summaries and related news articles. Once users vote on a specific piece of legislation, their opinions are sent directly to their respective member of Congress.

And at a time when the nation is experiencing an overwhelming amount of young people marching, protesting and writing letters to their politicians, IssueVoter could not have come at a better time.

“I got the idea for IssueVoter when I was in Iowa managing a campaign there,” said founder Maria Yuan. “I saw on the ground how much focus there is on elections but throughout the year when the real work is getting done that affects our lives, people are not engaged.

“People are not engaged because the information is hard to find and hard to understand. It was never easy to engage.”

Thanks to IssueVoter, however, which has users in all 50 states and has sent more than 50,000 opinions to Congress, it’s easier than ever to have one’s voice heard and to hold local politicians accountable.

Users can choose which issues mean the most to them, like education or health care, and gets alerts to their email when new bills that match the user’s interest is up for vote. IssueVoter also shows when a bill is passed and how the elected official voted.

“Historically, young people were always the group that didn’t turn out to vote that often,” said Yuan, “but I think it’s important for people to know that they can make a difference whether or not they voted in this last election just by voicing their opinion and speaking out on the actual issues that are being debated and the actual laws that are being passed.”

“Before you would have to go to all these different websites to do different things and what IssueVoter does is it brings it all in one place,” she continued. “It’s really personalized and from living in New York, everyone’s interests can be unique and someone might care about one issue or someone might care about three issues and it’s a way to track all of those issues in one place.”

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At press time for example, one bill that U.S. Rep Nydia Velázquez (D-Brooklyn-Manhattan) can vote on is whether or not to amend the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, which would require certain federal officials to make requisite financial disclosures.

IssueVoter then translates that bill into simpler terms like, “Should federal officials disclose requisite personal financial information within 30 days of assuming office?”

Another example includes whether or not the country should Bar Removal of Individuals Who Dream and Grow Our Economy (BRIDGE) Act.

IssueVoter then puts it in more colloquial terms like, “Should undocumented individuals who immigrated to the United States as children be protected from deportation?”

Once a user votes, he or she gets a message that says, “Great! You voted to SUPPORT [or OPPOSE] this bill and we’ve sent your opinion directly to Nydia Velázquez! Get People Involved! Share this bill with your friends!”

Travis Moore, a former legislative director said, “Contrary to the caricature, members of Congress do care what constituents think. We kept tallies of opinions about issues and constituent sentiment was a central part of the decision-making process — it changes mind and changes votes.”

The website also provides all of the contact information for members of Congress in one place, including the address of his or her office, telephone number, website and Twitter handle.

In addition, IssueVoter alerts users of what percentage of the time one’s member of Congress agrees with IssueVoters. For example, at press time, Velázquez represented IssueVoters 69 percent of the time. Users can also see the percentage of other IssueVoters that are for or against a certain bill.

“Congresswoman Velazquez cares deeply about her constituents’ views… She also supports using technology to better inform the public about member of Congress’ records, but the technology needs to be accurate,” Velazquez spokesperson Alex Haurek told the Brooklyn Eagle. “For example, she is an official co-sponsor of the legislation requiring federal officials to make financial disclosures public.

“She is one of only three Members of Congress who publicly supported this bill the very first day it was introduced,” he continued. “This fact is completely omitted from the IssueVoter website, something that calls into question the site’s methodology. Hopefully, the website improves to better reflect lawmakers’ records. For her part, the Congresswoman will continue representing the interests and priorities of working families in New York’s seventh district.”

“We’re trying to create actions that are impactful,” Yuan concluded. “We’re trying to make the process that we know to make an impact — which is the only way — easier.”

For more information and to sign up for IssueVoter, go to issuevoter.org.