ATLANTA — The Georgia chapter of the Southern Poverty Law Center is launching a bilingual voter engagement campaign ahead of November’s midterm elections.
The “We Decide: Georgia” campaign and its Spanish-language counterpart, “Decidimos,” will focus on educating, mobilizing and registering voters across the state.
“We’re trying to make sure that as many people as possible get the information that they need so that they can show up and have a real say,” SPLC Georgia State Director Isabel Otero said.
The campaign will place a particular emphasis on reaching non-English-speaking voters, including Georgians whose first language is Spanish.
“Their first language may be Spanish and that might be the language that they’re strongest in, they’re still U.S. citizens and are able to vote to make a change in the community if they want to,” Otero said.
The SPLC says the effort is also aimed at reaching young people and others who have faced barriers to political participation.
“We’re trying to not just reach young people, but really reach people who have faced a lot of barriers to full political participation,” Otero said.
The campaign will include community engagement events, canvassing and phone banking leading up to Election Day on Nov. 3.
In the 2024 general election, 68% of eligible voters cast a ballot, meaning more than two million people who were eligible to vote did not.
Otero said the campaign is designed to give Georgians information and resources ahead of the election.
“To make sure that all Georgians have the information, the tools, and the confidence that they need to participate in the decisions that affect their lives and make their voices heard,” Otero said.
The November election will determine several key races in Georgia, including who will become the state’s next governor when Gov. Brian Kemp’s term ends in January.
“We want to make sure people take back their power and make sure that the government is working for them and not the other way around,” Otero said.
WSB Radio’s Ashley Simmons & Jonathan O’Brien contributed to this story.