Our Communities Showed Up to Tackle #HungerOnTheBallot!
Our Communities Showed Up to Tackle #HungerOnTheBallot!
The 2022 elections were a critical moment for voters to address hunger and its root causes at the ballot box.
Our communities are reeling from ongoing pandemic impacts and the rising cost of food and housing. We expect as many as 1.5 million visits to emergency food assistance sites this year — nearly double pre-pandemic levels. And while connecting people to free, nutritious food is essential in the short-term, we know that food assistance alone will never be enough to end hunger for good. Systemic challenges like hunger and poverty require systemic solutions. And with so many key decisions made at the ballot box in Oregon, it’s incredibly important that every eligible voter weighs in.
With so many key decisions made at the ballot box in Oregon, it’s incredibly important that every eligible voter weighs in. And our communities showed up to tackle #HungerOnTheBallot this fall — passing the kind of policy changes we need to address hunger at its roots.
Here are just a few of the anti-hunger victories that will make a meaningful difference:
Oregon Measure 111: Affordable Healthcare for All
Thanks to voters who passed Measure 111, affordable healthcare is now a right in Oregon. No one should have to choose between food and medicine — and a lack of nutritious food can seriously harm our health. This measure is an important step forward to ensure we all have access to affordable care — no matter where we were born, how much money we make or the color of our skin.
Oregon Measure 112: Remove Slavery from Our Laws
Oregonians strongly affirmed that slavery and other types of involuntary servitude have no place in our laws. Systemic racism and exclusion has played a major role in creating hunger and poverty in every corner of our state — and passing Measure 112 is an essential, long overdue step for Oregon to move closer to a society rooted in liberation and equity.
Multnomah County Charter Changes
The experts on solutions to hunger are people who have experienced it. A healthy, well-functioning democracy is key to ensuring our elected officials hear and implement the priorities of communities with lived experience and expertise. With these changes to the Multnomah County Charter, voters have ensured that local government will be more responsive, accountable and transparent.
Portland City Charter Reform
Voters have embraced community-led changes to the Portland City Charter that will ensure more effective city services and greater choice in who represents us on key issues. With a more responsive and accountable local government in place, we are all better positioned to tackle hunger and its root causes in our community.
Oregonians have shown tremendous support for ballot measures endorsed by our Policy Leadership Council to advance racial equity, make government more responsive and promote a thriving democracy – all victories that will help our communities end hunger for good. We look forward to working with our new legislature and governor-elect (who happens to be a former food banker!) to build on these gains in the coming months.
