Midterm Elections – Why They Matter & How You Can Stay Informed

America needs a morale boost. According to an article from USA Today, 87% of U.S. citizens are dissatisfied with our current Congress. This number may be high, but it is a huge reason why the upcoming midterm elections are especially important. USA Today lists five reasons why midterm elections should matter to you:

• You will pay dearly for not voting—Low participation rates lead to government action that results in little transparency or accountability.
• Interest groups thrive on your indifference—Big money, partisan interest groups are more successful when you don’t vote or dilute their groups’ strengths.
• Important issues are at stake—Midterm elections provide a chance for voters to register their opinion on current, controversial issues.
• Control of the Senate is up for grabs
• Ballot issues affect your everyday life— Statewide decisions will determine everything.

So how do you get involved and stay informed?

Register for the Congressional Quarterly Roll Call Election Impact Conference in Washington, DC. On November 6^th from 7:30am to 2:00pm, you can get important midterm questions answered like “Which Senate races came down to the wire?” and “Which contests surprised the leaders shaping their party’s message?”

For a little background, Congressional Quarterly was founded in 1945 by Nelson and Henrietta Pointer under the premise that U.S. citizens should understand the real-life implications of their government and its actions. Today, CQ provides nonpartisan, congressional, authoritative news as well as legislative tracking tools to its subscribers.

Watch Guy Cecil, Executive Director of the Democratic Senatorial Committee and Rob Collins, Executive Director of the National Republican Senatorial Committee participate in a panel discussion moderated by CQ Roll Call’s Editor-in-Chief Christina Bellantoni. Cecil and Collins will give a behind-the-scenes perspective. They will examine lessons learned from the 2014 midterm elections as well as look ahead to 2016.

Along with Cecil and Collins, the CQ political team, David Drucker of the Washington Examiner, Mark Blumenthal of the Huffington Post, Perry Bacon of NBC News, and Chris Dorobek of GovLoop’s DorobekINSIDER will discuss the makeup of the 114^th Congress. At the CQ Roll Call Election Impact Conference, questions will be answered such as:

• How will the balance of power in the House and Senate shape the timing and scope of legislative action?
• Who are the key power players in leadership?
• What are their legislative agendas?
• Who are the new chairmen and chairwomen of the key policy-making committees?

To register for the CQ Roll Call event, click here, and for a complete agenda, click here.

Featured Image Attribution: John Morton