This piece was originally published in the October 2018 issue of electroindustry.

Andrew Quinn, President & CEO, ILSCO Corporation, and Chair, NEMAPAC

With federal and state elections taking place in November, this is a good time for company executives to discuss with their employees the impact policy issues have on operations, jobs, and growth, as well as to encourage active participation in elections. These efforts, commonly known as Get Out the Vote (GOTV) efforts, do not endorse any candidate and are designed to support the exercise of a most important constitutional right—the right to vote.

According to a report by Business-Industry Political Action Committee (BIPAC) in 2014, employers are a more credible source of information for an employee on political and public policy issues than both parties combined.

NEMA Members and their employees are encouraged to become directly involved in policy and political processes through GOTV advocacy efforts. Online tools include information on how to:

• learn about the study on business leadership impact on voter turnout;
• obtain voter registration information;
• discover helpful ideas aimed at building a more politically informed workforce;
• implement a Get-Out-the-Vote program at your company;
• find your legislator and learn about their voting records on key industry issues;
• learn about the “dos and don’ts” regarding federal election law;
• locate a state-by-state election calendar;
• obtain information pertaining to Government 101—ranging from how a bill becomes a law to helpful links to the House of Representatives and the Senate; and
• locate important links to build voter education.

For more information about NEMA’s political and election activities, visit www.nema.org/vote.

www.bipac.net/2014/BIPAC_Market_Research_Report_Jan2015.pdf