Candidate guides play an integral role in providing accurate election information to the public, including candidates on the ballot, election dates, candidate’s views on key issues in your community, and more.
This information will allow your library to participate in election administration while remaining nonpartisan.
DO…
- Include all registered candidates in your county
- Provide official election information from your state’s election website
- Share links to official campaign social media pages and websites
- Encourage all community members to be informed about a variety of issues
- Provide accurate election dates
- Advocate for voter registration within your library space
- Create reliable, accurate resources so that voters can avoid misinformation and disinformation related to the election
- Emphasize your nonpartisan status while not remaining neutral in highlighting the importance of accessing reliable information to the public
- Highlight your role as a trusted source of election information within the community
- Communicate with local election officials
- Use trusted news sources that host candidate forums, surveys, and official election data when creating your guide
- Access VoteLibraries Tools and Resources for information on election administration
- Contact your local election officials if you have any questions
- Encourage all library staff to share the guide with your patrons
- Post the voter guide on your library’s website
- Work with your local election officials to ensure that your guide is up-to-date with accurate information
DON’T…
- Endorse candidates
- Influence voting decisions
- Advocate for a particular political party
- Share your personal political views in your library capacity
- Ignore politics or prevent election administration in your library due to fears over being political - Elections are part of the democratic process
Download a Sample Voter Guide
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