Vote Quadrant is a solution created to affect change within the criminal justice system, at the local level, by voting solely on the issue of ending police brutality. A recommendation for strategic voting. Vote Quadrant is a system that teaches us how to vote strategically to end police brutality. It’s not enough to say vote, but it’s important to know how to vote.
The Quadrant, focuses on four municipal offices: mayor, district attorney, police chief, and judges. (Since the police chief is typically appointed rather than elected, your focus extends to whoever appoints them — generally the mayor or city/county manager.)
That is where criminal justice reform begins; that is where we must exercise our power. Granted, it’s all too easy to say “vote strategically” without providing the tools and resources to make it a reality.
So it’s time to do just that.
These question may seem frivolous, but in practice they’re quite the opposite: They’ll give you an idea of a candidate’s lived experiences and hopefully provide an understanding of what informs their interpretation of the law — and the value they see in human beings.
None of these are bulletproof. I can’t promise you that #VoteQuadrant will lead to fewer deaths at the hands of police officers or anyone else. And the questions you ask may well make people uncomfortable. But out of that discomfort, accountability grows — and lets us all take a step forward.