It’s May. May we all show up to support our neighbors. May we find the courage to continue to fight fascism. May we see the progress we’ve already made. May we find our community and the hope we all need.
Legacy media would have us believe two recent court rulings – the U.S. Supreme Court in Callais v. Louisiana and the Virginia Supreme Court on redistricting – spell doom for democracy.
This is far from the truth. These decisions make our job harder, but the midterms still hinge, as they always have, on voter turnout.
Read the articles below to understand what the courts just did and how we fight back. Then, mark your calendar for our midterm kickoff meeting on May 28th. This will be a working meeting where we’ll break off into committees, assign tasks and create a calendar. Snacks provided! Please sign up here.
Committees will include:
✅Get Out the Vote – High voter turnout is the #1 way we can turn the tide.
💯Vote Your Values Scorecard – Join this team if you want to tie candidates to their records and lift up those candidates who make a positive impact.
🔏Election Integrity/Security – This proactive team will make sure we have ample poll workers and poll watchers.
Fill out this volunteer form to let us know your area of interest.
There are several uncontested and highly “flippable” State House races in Johnson County and we need good people willing to step up and beat the supermajority. If you’ve ever considered running for office, found yourself wondering why “someone” doesn’t do more, or simply feel like you can’t stay on the sidelines any longer, this is your moment. No official Democratic candidates have filed for HD 39 nor HD 117
You don’t need to have all the answers to get started. We can help connect you with the right people, resources, and support to launch a successful campaign. Reach out to Boots, and we’ll help you take the next step.
Running for office isn’t rocket science…it takes committed people who genuinely care about the future of our community and are willing to lead. The deadline to file as a candidate is June 1st!
✅ BOTG Book Club: Mutual Aid: Building Solidarity During This Crisis and the Next, by Dean Spade
Wed. May 13 | 6:30 – 8 pm | First Lutheran Church, 6400 State Line Rd, Mission Hills, KS | RSVP
UMKC professor Drew Bergerson will lead a critical discussion about the practical opportunities and challenges for cultivating mutual aid in our life today. Author Dean Spade is a lawyer, transgender activist and professor of law who outlines not only the nature of mutual aid but many of the pitfalls that activists encounter when trying to implement it.
💙💙 We will be collecting individually, pre-packaged, kid-friendly snacks for Center of Grace. (Examples: apple sauce pouches, granola bars, fruit snacks, trail mix, chips, etc.)
Every month Boots hosts a great speaker, talks about community and gives action items to help you make a difference. If you haven’t attended a Monthly Meet-Up, join us! This month we’ll hear from Laurel Burchfield from Mainstream. She’ll talk about the rise of Christian Nationalism and the erosion of our separation between church and state.
✅ Monday | May 18 | 6 p.m. | Shawnee Mission Unitarian Universalist Church | 9400 Pflumm | Lenexa, KS | RSVP here.
The White House recently sent a letter to Kansas Senate President and Gubernatorial candidate Ty Masterson and House Speaker and Insurance Commissioner candidate Dan Hawkins to congratulate them on advancing the Trump administration’s Christian nationalist agenda. (WHAT???) While we focus on electing a U.S. Senator to represent the values of Kansans, we cannot forget the importance of state races, including the Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, Insurance Commissioner, and the entire KS House of Representatives.
We’ll also learn about the recently launched metro-wide Mutual Aid effort.
✅ Snacks for the Boys and Girls Club! We will be collecting individually, pre-packaged, kid-friendly snacks for Center of Grace, which runs the Olathe Boys and Girls Club.. (Examples: apple sauce pouches, granola bars, fruit snacks, trail mix, chips, etc.)
Looking for a fun activity that also models the peace we all need in our world? Join Moms Rage for a Peace Parade, kids’ activities and a way to learn more about area activist groups! (We’ll be there!)
✅ Sunday, May 31st | 1 to 4 p.m. | Loose Park | KCMO
Moms Rage is a creative and motivated group of caregivers, aunties, sisters, moms shes/theys/gays. Their events are full of joy and community. Find out more!
If you really want to make a difference in the midterms, this is your event. The Voter 2 Voter program uses a simple peer-to-peer online tool proven to increase voter turnout in Kansas significantly.
Join us for the Boots on the Ground Voter 2 Voter team. We’ll learn how to use the tool, get tips on how to talk with friends about voting – and meet amazing people.
Register: Thurs., May 14| 6-7:30 pm |JoCo Central Resource Library|9875 W. 87th, OPKS
June 1 - 12:00 p.m. Deadline to file as a candidate. Deadline for Kansans to change party affiliation. Check your voter registration.
July 14 - Deadline to register to vote or update your voter registration. Check your voter registration.
July 15 - First day of advance voting. Advance ballots by mail are transmitted. In-person advance voting may begin.
July 28 - In-person advance voting must begin for all counties.
August 4 - PRIMARY ELECTION (All ballots must be received by close of polls on Election Day.)
Now - July 8th - Visit voteroutreach.sos.mo.gov to check your existing registration, re-register if you’ve moved recently, or register for the first time.
July 25 - August 3 - Early Voting
August 4 – PRIMARY ELECTION - Polls are open until 7pm - find your polling location at
The Boots on the Ground calendar offers a curated list of action items in Kansas and the KCMO metro.
Please submit items for the calendar to: calendar@bootsonthegroundmidwest.org
First, thanks for being part of the resistance. We need every one of you!
We keep our work free because we want everyone to have access to information and resources aimed at preserving democracy and fighting authoritarianism.
You can support through Substack by opting for a paid subscription. Or, you can donate through ActBlue. Thank you so much!
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