Leading up to this election, I have interviewed a diverse group of leaders who shared their insights and wisdom about the pivotal political moment we’re in. One question I asked them was: “For anyone who either is undecided or doesn’t know if they’re going to vote, what would you say to them? And besides voting, what would your call to action be between now and election day?” Here’s what they had to say:

Carol Jenkins
Journalist, Activist, ERA Coalition Board Member
“Do whatever you can. Do something. I think it was Michelle Obama who said, ‘Just do something.’ We all have to take people to the voting booths with us to make sure that everybody votes. There may have been elections before that you could sit out because you were in a mood. This is not the one to sit out. You really need to get to the voting booth and to encourage people in the swing states, in the battleground states, if you know anybody there, call the people that you do know, give money if you can—two dollars, five dollars, whatever, it really does add up. The more donors that the candidates have in that category, the better for them because it shows groundswell support. So don’t feel badly if you’re only going on to give five dollars. It’s fabulous. And then make sure that you know who you’re going to vote for down ballot, because whoever becomes president will not be able to do what they want to do unless they have the Senate and the House as well.
And at the ERA Coalition, we have an app called Elect Equality. We’ve looked at every single person running for the Senate and running for the House. It tells you on ElectEquality.org whether they support women, have they voted for the ERA, are they broader supporters of equality? So make sure that you are not only voting for the president, but you’re voting for everybody else that will make this democracy work. It’s essential. There will be nothing to sign unless there is enough dominance in the Senate and the House to make it happen, no matter what the good intentions are. There are executive orders, but that only gets you so far. But for reproductive rights, she needs to be able to sign a bill, and that needs congressional approval. So do everything and anything; do something.”

Gretchen Whitmer
Governor of Michigan
“This is going to be the single most consequential election for women’s rights we’ve seen in our lifetime, and young women will play a big role in deciding this race. I’ve sat where you are now, angry about the right-wing attacks on our fundamental freedoms as women. And what I want you to know is you can do something about it: vote and bring your friends. You are strong, you’ve got grit, you are full of courage and heart, and together we’re going to win this. Everything is at stake.”

Ai-jen Poo
Co-founder of Care in Action
“I would say that everyone needs to make a plan to vote now. I’m thinking about all of the infrequent women and women of color voters that I know, and so often it’s because of caregiving challenges. If you’re a single mom and you have a bunch of people who are relying on you that you can’t leave, but then you also can’t bring them to the polls, it’s really challenging. And a lot of people don’t have jobs where they have Tuesday off. But what you can do is actually make a plan—make a plan to get support for care or to support others with care so that they can get to the polls, and for everyone in your circle to actually help them make a plan to think about it in advance.
It’s just like anything else that’s important in our lives: the way that we show that it’s important is to actually make a plan. And for those who are undecided or planning to sit it out, it’s been said many times, but the choice not to vote is a choice, it’s a vote. And you should know that if you are not proactively having your voice heard, somebody else’s voice is going to be the deciding factor.
And when it comes to care, you’re voting for your future life. My hope is that by the time I need care, we have caregiving systems in place. I’m voting for that. And if that feels too selfish for you, you’re voting for your kids to be able to have access to care, you’re voting for your kids to have more rights, not less than you did. And that feels like legacy. That feels like, what am I doing on this earth? What am I doing with this life? Minimally, let’s do no harm; maximally, let’s actually have our voices lead to real progress and a better future for future generations.”

Gloria Steinem
Author, Activist
“Up to now, we’ve been ignoring the talents of half the country. That alone should keep us looking to all the people, not just half, in the future. It’s been a long time since I and others ran as delegates pledged to Shirley Chisholm as a presidential candidate in 1972, and even longer since Victoria Woodhull ran for the Presidency in 1872. Now, I hope we’ve begun to learn that we have not been living in a democracy. Democracy is only realized when all adults are able to express our opinions and use our talents. Half this country is female, and half is composed of people of color. Until those exclusions are gone, we are not living in a true democracy. Whenever we see a decision-making body, it should represent the experience of the people who are affected by those decisions. That should be common sense, but from corporate boards to state legislatures, it’s still far from common.”

Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett
U.S. Representative
“I always tell people that the one place we can’t infiltrate are the group chats. That’s the one place that you don’t see ads. So I’ve asked everyone that I get a chance to talk to, to be my soldiers in the group chats, and at least once a week, if not more than once a week, put out a fact about the election, put out a fact about the candidates, put out a donation link. Anywhere on the ballot, just put something out and inform those in your circle. Because we find that a lot of times people believe that they’re powerless, and the reality is that the people have more power than any elected official. There are so many people that are turned off by politics and politicians nowadays, but they’ll listen to their friends and their neighbors and their coworkers and their sororities sisters and fraternity brothers. They will listen to you before they ever would listen to me. So it’s important that we recognize our influence and our power, and we really start to flex it and make sure that we’re helping out by informing those that are in our circle.
The other thing that I tell people is that this election is going to be so tight that it’s not even just about your circle. I want you to stretch yourself and talk to someone who is completely opposite to you and tell them about the importance of voting. And you don’t know how much it can do when you take the time to talk to someone that maybe other people wouldn’t talk to for whatever reason. It’s important that we ask people for their votes. It’s important that we let people know, no matter what walk of life you come from, this really is a great equalizer. And it’s important that you understand that you are just as powerful if you are the unhoused person as you are if you are the person that’s literally sitting in the White House—your vote counts the same. It is important that we understand that all of our voices matter in this process.
I think that this election, we should just focus on the fact that no one is perfect, and you’re never going to agree with anyone a hundred percent. So I’m not necessarily looking for you to believe that you have the perfect candidate, but I am looking for people to believe that they are voting for someone that is fighting for a more perfect union.”

Ted Bunch
Cofounder and CDO of A Call to Men
“For those undecided or considering not voting, I would just say that your voice matters. It’s very important. And this election is about shaping our future, and that requires all of us to be involved. And beyond voting, I’d encourage people to stay involved, stay engaged, educate yourself, and have conversations with your friends and family around these very important issues, and challenge biases that come up as difficult as that may be. It’s up to us to create the kind of world that we want to see. And for A Call to Men, that’s a world where all men and boys are loving and respectful, and all women, girls, and those in the margins are valued and safe.”

María Teresa Kumar
Founder, President and CEO of Voto Latino
“This election will have the most voters that are multicultural and the youngest sec of voters in our nation’s history. When people say, ‘Well, I don’t know what my vote did,’ I kindly remind them that it eradicated a lot of student loan debt. It decreased inhalers from 2000 to $35; insulin, exact same, $35. All those roads that you’re seeing being built, that was the Biden bump. And it’s in order for us to finish the job of codifying Roe versus Wade, addressing the voter rights restrictions that are very real, and making sure we codify voting rights once again, that we pass immigration reform as it relates to people that have been here for 10, 20 years, the only way we do that is by going and voting our values.
And there are more of us. In 2018, it was the largest peak in voter registration and turnout in a century. And then in 2020, in the middle of a pandemic, we exposed our health for our democracy, and we did it again. And then we did it again in 2022. We’re tired because we’re winning, but we need to go back there and do it one more time because we need another four years to safeguard our democracy. But we should also applaud ourselves because the leaps and bounds that we’ve done to safeguard our climate, our earth, based on our votes, is not small. It’s the most instrumental piece of legislation that we’ve seen in a hundred years, and the most instrumental than any other country when it comes to climate justice. If we care about Roe versus Wade, the Supreme Court is not gonna budge, but who will? The people we elect in Congress and the Senate and the White House, because it will be our mandate to them.
The way we change systems is not by resisting, it’s not by saying it’s messy, it’s not by sitting out—it’s literally by occupying that voting booth and voting our values. Because when we go to the elections in November, I’m no longer voting for myself; I’m literally voting for my daughter. And what’s going to happen to a generation when they look at us and say, ‘You guys did have it better, and you left us behind. You closed the upward mobility of women. You closed the upward mobility of transgender, just because you were too tired or it was too messy or it was too hard.’?
Between now and November 5th, I encourage people to remember that we are in election season, make sure that you’re making a plan to vote. Know what’s on your ballot. Go with a crib sheet, because what we don’t realize is that if you go in, and you’re like, “Oh, I didn’t see this before.” We are actually responsible for making people wait in line longer. So go ready. If you want more information on how to vote, where to go vote, how to volunteer, how to become a poll watcher, we have this website votolatino.org to go ahead and find all that information. Share it with your friends and family. You don’t have to be Latino to do it. It’s all very easy and digestible. We deeply believe in democracy for all of us. And so if you want to volunteer, there’s a place for you to all sign up. That’s what we need right now. We are a beautiful, multicultural, multi-talented country. And when we put our will to do something, we are unstoppable, as President Biden says, but we need to have the will. And there are so many millions more of us who see America in a very different light moving forward. And we need to make sure that we are working as a concerted effort. Ask a friend, ‘Do you need a ride to the polls?’ Give them a ride. There are so many ways that we could make it fun and do it with joy, that I think will actually eclipse the grumpiness on the other side.”

Nancy Pelosi
U.S. Representative, Former Speaker of the House
“No wasted time, no underutilized resource, and no regrets the day after the election, we could have done this much more… the last mile, the last thing we needed to do, whether it’s texting or calling or walking precincts or sending in another small donation or sending postcards to friends, whatever it is. That’s our motto: we don’t agonize, we organize.”

Glynda Carr
Cofounder, President and CEO of Higher Heights
“We are telling people it is all about our circle of influence; people listen to us when we speak, so use those times that we’re gathering around food to actually have conversations with your network. And volunteer for organizations that you’re inspired by, volunteer for candidates up and down the ballot that you’re inspired by.
I sat down and said, who are the people in my family? And I was able to name five people that I didn’t know if they had a vote plan. You don’t need a call sheet, you don’t need a text platform. You actually could just pull your phone out and have some real conversations to make sure that everybody’s vote ready.
We live in a democracy, and part of a democracy is this notion of one person, one vote. I come from a generation, of course, that obviously means that people fought for the votes. That doesn’t necessarily resonate with the young people in my life, but what should resonate is that we do live in a democracy, and your voice does matter. We need everybody to participate. This is going be a tight election. Your vote actually is going to matter. I recognize the complexity of the electoral college, but as an example, in 2016, the margin of win in Michigan was 10,500 votes. And in Connecticut, my home state, Jahana Hayes, a congresswoman for part of Connecticut, won her election by 18 votes. So your vote actually does matter. But more importantly, your voice in this democracy matters. Our state legislators and Houses are our people’s house. The White House is our house, and so is Congress. So if we really want to take back our democracy, I would say take a chance, raise your voice, raise your votes, and then together, I believe we can move this country to higher heights.”

Erin Vilardi
Founder and CEO of VoteRunLead
“Become a human hyperlink and put yourself out there to friends and family and really pick up the phone and call the people that you know and love. It won’t be awkward, well, not too awkward. Be like, ‘I want you to vote… Do you have a voter plan?’ We know voter plans have some crazy amount of increase in your actual ability to get out and vote. If it rains, do you have an umbrella? The rain dampens voter turnout—these crazy little human behavioral things. So be the little behavioral change for you and your group of friends over the next couple of weeks.
I would go over to WomenCount.org, which is where our candidates and a bunch of other candidates are. And you can give a hundred bucks and it can go to 10 women, $10 each for a state that you care about. Like women in Ohio running for the state house, your money will go really far over there. This is the first year they’re really doing it. I wish it got more traction. Your money will go further. Of course if you want to give to the presidential, that’s your business, but thinking about impact those down-ballot women, your dollar goes really far in those elections. And then make your own personal voting plan for you to make sure that you show up, whether it’s absentee or at the polls.”

Mini Timmaraju
President and CEO of Reproductive Freedom for All
“Research shows that the most powerful and trusted messenger we have in reaching your community is you. So we need you out in your community talking about the stakes of our fight for reproductive freedom. Urge your family and friends to get involved. We need each and every one of you by our side in this fight—our lives and our freedoms depend on it.
Our team is on the ground in states across the country, mobilizing our 4 million members by knocking on doors, sending texts, holding events, and speaking to their communities. We have events from now until Election Day—and you can join us in person or online to help get out the vote and elect reproductive freedom champions from state houses to the White House.”

Congresswoman Barbara Lee
U.S. Representative
Besides voting, my call to action is to get involved. This is a moment to get involved. And what I say to people who are thinking about not voting is, ‘I hear you and I see you.’ Because that’s where I was when I met Shirley Chisholm. Literally, I had a class in government, and I was going to flunk it because I was required to do field work for McGovern, Muskie, Humphrey’s campaign, and I said, ‘Flunk me. I’m not working in their campaign.’ I was Black Student Union president, I was a community worker with the Black Panther Party. I knew the world in which we lived, and I knew the impact of the United States policies on people like me, a young Black single mother, survivor of domestic violence, who had had an abortion—the whole nine yards.
So I was intentional about not voting. It wasn’t like I was apathetic. And believe you me, I don’t think a lot of young people now are apathetic. I think they’re intentional because they have not seen their government work for them. So I would say to them, ‘You have to have your voices heard. You have to get engaged so that your government can work for you.’ Try to do something that will help move us forward.”

Kimberly Peeler-Allen
Cofounder of Higher Heights
“My call to action is to talk to everyone in your network and make sure that they know what is at stake and that they have a plan to vote. Not just that they’re registered, but they know where their poll site is. Are they voting early? Are they voting paper ballot and mailing it in? Do they have to physically go somewhere? If they’re voting on election day, what time are they going?
The second part of that is, as you’re talking to your friends and family about going out to vote, making sure that they are making decisions that will withstand time. The economic struggles that people are experiencing are real and they are immediate, but thinking more broadly, what about your children? What about your neighbor’s children? What type of future do you want to leave them? Do you want to leave this next generation with the assumption that you can be a convicted felon and you can still move forward and you can still be successful and that’s not a hindrance, so following the rule of law doesn’t really matter?
It distresses me to no end that my 17-year-old daughter has fewer bodily rights than her grandmother did, who was very much around when Roe became law. What kind of environment do you want to leave for the future? And, yes, there are immediate needs, but this is also an election that will set us on a course, I think similar to the coming out of the Depression and the election of FDR and the huge impact that his presidency had on the country for generations. We’re watching the possibilities of the social safety net and other things that he put in place be dismantled and destroyed. So thinking beyond the immediate—that is something that I implore people to think about when they are going to the polls this year, because it’s not about us: it’s about our children and our children’s children.”

Anita Hill
Law Professor at Brandeis University
“Just being in conversation with our neighbors, with our friends, with people who we’re in social or professional groups with—just being in those frank conversations about where we are now and on some of the very fundamental issues like bodily autonomy. And I include not only reproductive justice in that, but I also include violence in homes and on the streets, the kind of violence against women and people, especially transgender people, are facing today. And this isn’t just a national problem, it’s a global problem; we’re seeing the emergence of a movement in some African nations as well. So what it says is that this is not just an American problem, but it’s one that we should be able and willing to lead on. But we can’t lead on it if we’re ignoring it.
That means that we have to continue asking and answering questions about that as a fundamental problem, because I don’t think we can separate it from even the reproductive justice issue. It is about our autonomy and control over our bodies and how it gets lost in a political conversation. So I think we have to think broadly about the issues. We have to talk about the issues, and I’m hoping that those talks and conversations are intergenerational. I think that will help bring people in with different perspectives, because of generational perspectives, into not only voting this time but in the next election and the next and the next, when maybe some of us are no longer around.
And then I would say, other than voting, of course people can make contributions, even small financial contributions, but also people can make calls on behalf of candidates and be a part of those election processes that exist before November 5th, hearing from people about what the issues are. So I think there are any number of things, and I think that the energy that is being created will create a new level of people’s engagement even before they cast their vote.”

Reshma Saujani
Founder and CEO of Moms First
There’s so much at stake in this election, especially for women. Issues like affordable child care, paid family leave, and reproductive freedom—these are not only economic issues, they are basic human rights. And we are at a point in history where these rights are on the line. And so much of this is about control, gender, and race.
If Democrats don’t figure out how to deal with our complicated feelings about powerful women, it could cost us this election. And that doubt has real consequences. It’s not unlike what we saw play out during Harris’s time in the Biden administration, where persistent doubts about her (including from inside the White House) prevented her from fulfilling her full potential in the role. We can’t let that happen again. Not when losing this election means jeopardizing the future of IVF, abortion access, affordable child care and much, much more.
If we end up in the same place we did in 2016, there’s just no excuses. As a country, we will have to take a really hard look at ourselves, at our country, and the men in our lives, and explore why we continue to fail to elect qualified women.
Finally, for those who are voting for Harris, I have a clear message for you: Stop telling your friends you don’t think she can win. Stop fueling the imposter syndrome narrative that society loves to embrace that saps women of their power. If you support her, don’t apologize for it. Studies have found that raising the question of a hypothetical woman’s electability suppresses votes for female candidates. We have nothing to gain from hedging our bets on the question of whether or not she can win—but we sure as hell have a lot to lose.”
Visit What Will It Take’s 2024 Election page for more conversations, information on the biases and barriers women candidates face and how to counter them, and links to voting resources and organizations working to advance women’s political leadership in this election and beyond.