Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

Teams enlisted to turn their arenas into major league polling places

Arena voting, Kentucky,

Kentucky hailed as a success its decision to use some large facilities as voting super centers for the June primary, including the convention center in Louisville.

Brett Carlsen/Getty Images

More than a dozen professional teams are interested in allowing their arenas to be voting centers this fall — adding to the growing list of ways civic engagement has taken new forms during the pandemic.

The stadiums, which can hold tens of thousands of fans, have sat mostly empty since the Covid-19 outbreak brought pro sports to a halt five months ago. In November, though, they could provide enough room for poll workers to space out a large number of ballot stations and socially distance voters while reducing wait times.

The initiative comes as election officials across the country try to make in-person voting safe and mail-in voting accessible while President Trump continues to cast doubt on the security of what could be a majority vote-by-mail election.


Dubbed the Election Super Centers Project, the multi-league effort was announced last week by the National Vote at Home Institute, which normally promotes casting ballots through the mail, and the Silver Linings Group, a group of public policy experts formed this spring to mull solutions for problems the pandemic has brought to light.

But the teams, which include the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers and NBA's Milwaukee Bucks in the swing states of Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, are still ironing out the details with the local authorities as they discuss plans to open for early voting and registration.

Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter

Other teams already on board are baseball's Boston Red Sox; the NHL's Washington Capitals and New Jersey Devils (who play in Newark); and the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers, Indiana Pacers (Indianapolis), Golden State Warriors (San Francisco) and Washington Wizards (who share the Capital One Arena and an owner with the Capitals).

The effort hopes to expand to include up to 25 teams and arenas, and discussions are starting with some colleges regarding use of their venues.

Inspired by an effort in Kentucky's June primary — when polling centers in Louisville's convention center and a sports venue in Lexington helped poll workers space out voting booths and reduce wait times — the organizers of the effort say that turning arenas into voting "super centers" could increase in-person turnout this fall by more than 1 milllion.

"The cornerstone of being an American is the sanctity of your vote," said Eugene Jarecki, the filmmaker and author who helped found the Silver Linings Project. "When you have a physical emergency like a flood or a fire, very often you see buildings like the Superdome used. The same is true here. We have a democratic emergency under the threat of the virus."

Jarecki said last month's announcement from basketball superstar LeBron James's More Than a Vote that the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks would open their NBA arenas as polling places also proved the idea's viability.

While Jarecki said the group strongly supports voting by mail, the project wants to give voters all options.

To meet the goal of adding 25 teams, the project has convened experts and influencers like Jared Dearing, the election official who organized Kentucky's use of super centers, and recording artist John Legend and NBA coach Doc Rivers, both of whom have been outspoken advocates of expanding voting.

"I can't imagine a more important thing at this very moment for Americans," Jarecki said.

Read More

Just the Facts: DEI

Colorful figures in a circle.

Getty Images, AndreyPopov

Just the Facts: DEI

The Fulcrum strives to approach news stories with an open mind and skepticism, looking to present our readers with a broad spectrum of viewpoints through diligent research and critical thinking. As best as we can, we work to remove personal bias from our reporting and seek a variety of perspectives in both our news gathering and selection of opinion pieces.

However, before our readers can analyze varying viewpoints, they must have the facts.

Keep ReadingShow less
The Republican Party Can Build A Winning Coalition With Independents

People voting at a polling booth.

Getty Images//Rawpixel

The Republican Party Can Build A Winning Coalition With Independents

The results of the 2024 election should put to bed any doubts as to the power of independent voters to decide key elections. Independents accounted for 34% of voters in 2024, handing President Trump the margin of victory in every swing state race and making him only the second Republican to win the popular vote since 1988. The question now is whether Republicans will build bridges with independent voters and cement a generational winning coalition or squander the opportunity like the Democrats did with the independent-centric Obama coalition.

Almost as many independents came out to vote this past November as Republicans, more than the 31% of voters who said they were Democrats, and just slightly below the 35% of voters who said they were Republicans. In 2020, independents cast just 26% of the ballots nationwide. The President’s share of the independent vote went up 5% compared to the 2020 election when he lost the independent vote to former President Biden by a wide margin. It’s no coincidence that many of the key demographics that President Trump made gains with this election season—Latinos, Asians and African Americans—are also seeing historic levels of independent voter registration.

Keep ReadingShow less
Elon Musk's X Factor Won’t Fix Big Government

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk speaks with former president Donald Trump during a campaign event at the Butler Farm Show, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Butler, Pa.

Getty Images, The Washington Post

Elon Musk's X Factor Won’t Fix Big Government

Elon Musk’s reputation as a disruptor, transforming industries like automobiles and space travel with Tesla and SpaceX, will be severely tested as he turns his attention to government reform through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). DOGE lacks official agency status and depends on volunteers, raising concerns about its credibility. Musk claims his team of young techies can slash federal spending by $2 trillion, but history casts serious doubt on private-sector fixes for big government. So far, he has largely avoided legal scrutiny with the GOP-led Congress’ help, while handing sensitive operations to his team of “experts.” What could possibly go wrong?

Musk’s plan involves embedding these techies in federal agencies to find inefficiencies. His confidence comes from past successes, such as cost-cutting at X (formerly Twitter) through drastic measures like layoffs. There’s no denying that private-sector innovation has improved government services before—cloud computing, AI-driven fraud detection, and streamlined procurement have saved billions. But running a government isn’t like running a business. It’s not just about efficiency or profit—it’s about providing essential services, enforcing laws, and balancing competing interests to ensure a measure of fairness.

Keep ReadingShow less