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Sharp Connector: October Update

by | Oct 23, 2015

 

 

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Dear Friend:

Welcome to the Sharp Connector newsletter – different from the Sharp Record, and with more flexibility of opinion (keep reading – Lenexa, OP, Shawnee). Previous emails from me have been from my personal account ([email protected]) and I never use my jccc.edu email for personal, political, or business purposes to avoid any real or perceived conflict. However, because part of my business is helping replace politicians with public servants, I want to make sure there is no confusion with my role – even though it is an elected one – serving Johnson County Community College.

Emails from my “vote” account will be exclusively JCCC-related information. All political information and commentary will be in this newsletter from [email protected]. My goal is to connect you to your government in a way that makes sense. 

Each Connector will legislative updates and Kansas or regional news. Some of the stories will feature clients and when applicable, I will provide a disclaimer. Yes, candidates pay me, but I won’t consult for someone I wouldn’t vote for and who wouldn’t be communicative, accountable, and a good public servant!

I started “Translating Politics Into English” as a business in 2011 to help state and local elected officials more effectively and efficiently communicate with voters. That remains the bulk of my work and the part I most enjoy.

  • The VoteSharp web & mobile constituent communications app and the
  • KanVote advance ballot application subscription service are two other side projects I’ve developed to fill unique candidate and voter needs.

BUT! In order to use these skills, people who:

  • Care about communicating with voters,
  • Are accessible and accountable to their districts, and
  • Have a heart for public service,

must first get elected – or re-elected. I help candidates navigate the yard sign/stickers/website/direct mail functions of campaigns, so they spend time talking to voters. If “Translating Politics Into English” is my spoonful of sugar, campaigns are the bitter pill which I am trying desperately to skip (know someone with good project management skills who wants to do campaign work?).

So, there’s the scoop on the new format, happy connecting and I look forward to your feedback!

Stephanie Sharp
Chief Political Translator
Sharp Connections

I met Dinah in late-April and she hired me to help her run in the August 2, 2016 Republican Primary Election against the radical state senator for our area, Greg Smith. Even if you forget he supported the massive income tax cuts which have the state teetering on bankruptcy, or his attempt to fix it by taxing the elderly and middle class (largest tax hike in KS history), his claims that taxes are legalized theft are laughable coming from a lifetime of taxpayer-funded jobs and pensions.

Moreover, his favorite ruse is to remind critics he’s a teacher – neglecting to mention one of the worst public education voting records in the state. Some of Dinah’s most fervent volunteers are her opponent’s former teaching coworkers. Smith is far too extreme for the district he represents (all of Lenexa, OP west of Metcalf from 71st to 91st), and the “Dinah & Obama are BFFs” and “RINO” barbs are already being thrown:

A graduate of Trevecca Nazarene University with a degree in business administration, she and her husband Jeff moved to Kansas City so he could attend theology school. She did non-profit fundraising work, then stayed home with their boys, William and Tyler. She has been active in their sports (soccer and swimming), school PTA (Tomahawk, Manchester Park, Prairie Trail) and Game On for Kansas Schools, Central Church of the Nazarene in Lenexa, and blogs at Dinah’s Dishes. Dinah is a wonderful human being and will be a huge improvement representing us in Topeka. Learn more, follow, and donate below!
Learn More!

Advance Ballot
Subscription Service &
1-Stop-Shop for
Candidate Research
TWO obstacles create low voter turnout:
Convenience & Information

Convenience Solution: You can mow your lawn or clean your house. IF you know you can vote by mail and IF you know where to find the application to do so, you can print, complete, stamp, and mail it, too. Or, for $10/year, I’ll do all that for you – for each election. You’ll receive a completed Advance Ballot Application* and a stamped envelope addressed to your election office, all it needs is your signature and a drop in the mailbox.

Information Solution: As a free service for anyone to access, KanVote.com/learn aggregates all the candidate surveys/questionnaires, endorsements, articles, and audio or video for each candidate. There’s NO commentary on this site. I trust voters are smart enough that, IF given unbiased resources, they will make informed decisions. Those resources are nearly impossible to find. It’s hard for me, and I know where to look!

Please share with friends who WANT to vote but it’s inconvenient or DON’T vote because they “don’t know enough about the candidates” or those who vote in general elections, but not in THE MOST IMPORTANT election in Kansas, the August Republican Primary Election (August 2, 2016).

  • 81% of Kansas state and statewide elected officials are Republican. If you don’t vote in August, 81% of elected officials are elected by ~10% of the population (20% turnout, the winner needs 50.01% of that!). 
  • Gift subscriptions as stocking stuffers.
  • Bulk subscriptions available for your business, PTA, church choir, civic group, etc.

* This is for the Application to receive an advance ballot, not THE ballot! The ballot will be mailed to your address 20 days before each election.
Subscribe Now!

For years I’ve been telling my friends on city councils and school boards they need to do e-newsletters to give patrons an insider’s view of how our cities and school districts work – a view that very few see, let alone understand.

Kudos to Brandon Kenig, who was appointed to fill the seat of Michelle Distler when she won the Shawnee mayorship. He’s writing a great newsletter that gives you access to some of the inside baseball of the Shawnee City Council, activities going on around the city, and is a great resource for his community.

Click below to drop him an email and sign up for the newsletter.

  • Disclaimer: Brandon uses my VoteSharp web & mobile constituent communications app.
Receive Brandon’s Newsletter

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