Our Campaign for an Inclusive Kansas
All Kansans should feel safe, welcomed, and able to participate fully in their communities under equal protection of the law.
Overview
Our communities must be heard. Kansas Appleseed is working to shift power to the people, activate community members around the issues that matter most to them, and break down barriers to civic participation.
Integrated voter engagement (IVE) is an approach to civic participation that goes beyond traditional get-out-the-vote methods and focuses on building power and leadership within communities; engaging community members who are underrepresented yet most impacted by policy issues; and creating year-round, sustainable infrastructures for creating change.
“All political power is inherent in the people” - Kansas Bill of Rights
Voter
Engagement
Engaging Southeast and Southwest Kansans
Southwest and Southeast Kansas's unique strengths and perspectives are integral to what makes Kansas the state it is. Despite this, these regions experience some of the worst statistical indicators for health outcomes in the state, including some of the lowest levels of civic engagement and voter turnout.
Target Counties
Southeast: Allen County, Bourbon County, Cherokee County, Crawford County, Labette County, Montgomery County, Neosho County, Wilson County, Woodson County
Southwest: Finney County, Ford County, Grant County, Seward County, Stevens County
Impact: Running for Local Office
Nonpartisan training on running grassroots campaigns equips community members with skills to run for local offices. Since 2017, Kansas Appleseed has provided education on filing with the county election clerk, ordering campaign materials, canvassing, and communicating ideas effectively.
Meeting Kansans where they're at works. Between the 2016 and 2020 elections, there was a 47.8% increase in voter turnout among a hyper-targeted group of Kansas voters who received outreach from Kansas Appleseed.
Fighting Voter Suppression
Voting restrictions get in the way of making Kansas a better place for everyone to live, prevent voter engagement, and lead to lower representation among communities most impacted by policy decisions. Kansas Appleseed steadfastly defends voting rights when they are under attack—in the statehouse, courtrooms, and in our communities.
Welcoming
Immigrants
Subhead Here
Kansas should welcome immigrants—with full participation in our communities and equal protection of the law—regardless of their immigration or documentation status. 1 in 14 Kansans is an immigrant, whose contributions build strong Kansas communities.
In Southwest Kansas, immigrants make up over 20 percent of the population! Leading up to the 2020 Census, Kansas Appleseed worked to ensure hard-to-count communities—including Kansans of color, migrant communities (both documented and undocumented), children underfive 5, and people with disabilities—were represented, particularly in Southwest Kansas.
Explore our resources to support foreign-born Kansans and their families.
Resources