Ahead of Tuesday’s 2022 midterm elections, professional sports leagues across the country encouraged their fans to get involved in the process. Yahoo Sports looked at how several major sports have worked in partnership with other organizations.
NFL
The league is building on its NFL Votes initiative, which was launched in partnership with the NFL Players Association in 2020, ahead of the presidential election. To see also : NFL scores drop: League faces lowest result since 2017 as red zone inefficiency leads to dramatic drop.
The league says it reached more than 160 million people before the midterm elections through the NFL Votes initiative.
This year, the league says “all 30 NFL stadiums are available for election-related activities if needed by local election officials.”
Stadiums such as the Carolina Panthers‘ Bank of America Stadium and the Denver Broncos’ Empower Field at Mile High have been used as early voting sites.
The San Francisco 49ers Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California will be used as an early voting and Election Day voting site.
In partnership with several veterans and military organizations, the pro-democracy non-partisan coalition Vet The Vote was formed.
One of the coalition’s goals was to recruit 100,000 veterans and their family members to serve as poll workers to help manage the 2022 midterm elections to address the national shortage of poll workers.
As of Thursday, more than 63,000 poll workers were employed, according to Vet the Vote.
“Carolina Votes” is painted on the field during an NFL game at Bank of America Stadium on Oct. 23, 2022, in Charlotte. (AP Photo/Brian Westerholt)
NBA
One notable way the NBA is trying to avoid the 2022 vote is by not scheduling any games on Election Day. This may interest you : 2022 MLB Home Run Derby: Selecting the appropriate eight slugger field for Dodger Stadium display. All 30 teams will be in action on Monday to promote the importance of voting.
In a statement, the NBA’s rationale for not scheduling games on Election Day was “the NBA family’s focus on promoting nonpartisan civic engagement and encouraging fans to make a plan to vote during the midterm elections.”
National Basketball Coalition for Social Justice Executive Director James Cadogan told Yahoo Sports that the NBA is not new to getting people involved in civic engagement.
“We have a tradition going back decades of dealing with social issues and one of the most important is voting,” Cadogan said. “Without the right to vote, without people participating and casting a vote, little else matters. So the people’s ability to have a voice in a democracy is an important value that the NBA community stands for again and again.”
More than half of the teams in the league have individual voting.
The WNBA regularly engages in activism, and ramping up during election cycles is no different.
“I love looking at what the athletes in the [WNBA] have done to really set the bar for participation and advocacy,” Cadogan said.
The WNBA has partnered with Rock The Vote since 2018 and ahead of the 2022 midterm elections, launched a strong social media campaign to get Americans registered on National Voter Registration Day.
Since then, the WNBA players’ union and teams around the country and league have participated in the election.
Alysha Clark and Elizabeth Williams were among the Washington Mystics players who took part in the recent Washington Wizards civil engagement night against the Indiana Pacers.
The event was held in partnership with the NBA and Headcount, a non-profit organization that promotes democracy in the United States.
NHL
The NHL and HeadCount have formed a “Good To Vote” partnership to encourage hockey fans to stay current on their voter registration status and vote in November. This may interest you : Top 10 Amazon Prime Video Shows and Movies: News and Trends Today, July 22.
“The National Hockey League is proud to partner with HeadCount and the ‘Good to Vote’ platform as together we introduce innovative ways to make nonpartisan civic engagement and democratic participation more accessible to hockey fans across the United States,” said Kim Davis, NHL Senior Executive Vice President of social impact, growth initiatives and legislative affairs.
Through this partnership, upon verifying their status, fans were automatically entered into the 2023 Winter Classic raffle for a chance to win four tickets to the 2023 game in Boston, along with hotel and airline accommodations, signed NHL jerseys and other merchandise.
MLB
MLB has a long-standing partnership with the Civic Alliance and has been working with the organization since 2020 to encourage fans to vote.
MLB will use its various media platforms, which include MLB Network, MLB.com and various social media accounts, to reinforce Election Day and the importance of voting.
In addition, various MLB clubs provide fans with localized information on how and where they can vote. The league also encourages its employees to vote and provides them with time and accommodations to do so.
The National Women’s Soccer League has been at the forefront of social issues since its inception in 2012.
In 2021, as several states passed strengthened election statutes of limitations, the NWSL joined more than 100 businesses and corporations in opposing the regulations.
NWSL Players Association Executive Director Meghann Burke said the league has partnered with the Freedom to Vote campaign, a nonpartisan education and advocacy effort supporting the passage of the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.
Ahead of the 2022 midterm elections, Burke said the players and the association will actively work together in turnout efforts.
MLS
This election cycle, MLS is partnering with Power the Polls. Fans found on the league’s website can sign up to be poll workers wherever they are in the country and support the voting process. In 2020, there were more than 700,000 citizens at the polling stations, and this year the need is even greater.
Also on the league’s website, fans can find more information about registering to vote, confirming that registration, polling places and more information about mail-in and absentee voting.
“Participating in local and national elections is one of the most important responsibilities we have as citizens,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said in a statement. “We hope to inspire MLS fans and the entire soccer community to learn about the voting process, register to vote and vote on Election Day.”
The 2022 midterm elections have already seen record early voter turnout, with an estimated 35.5 million Americans voting before Election Day.
