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Keep Families Afloat Launches Statewide Advertising Campaigns
Supporting Pro-Child Tax Credit Candidates
Washington, D.C. – August 4, 2022 – Keep Families Afloat, a national initiative launched in April by a group of political strategists and former advisors to President Biden, President Obama, and Secretary Clinton, today announced that the entity is making a six-figure buy on statewide campaigns backing key Senate candidates in Georgia, Nevada, Ohio, and Pennsylvania who have supported the expanded, monthly Child Tax Credit (CTC).
Given groundbreaking new data indicating the CTC’s critical significance among important voting blocs in swing states across the country, these advertisements aim to inform and educate Americans in advance of the upcoming midterm elections around which political candidates have served – and continue to serve – as champions for crucial benefit programs like the CTC.
Advertisements have just been launched to support the following elected officials:
Sen. Reverend Raphael Warnock (D), Incumbent Candidate for U.S. Senate from Georgia
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D), Incumbent Candidate for U.S. Senate from Nevada
Rep. Tim Ryan (D), Candidate for U.S. Senate from Ohio
Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman (D), Candidate for U.S. Senate from Pennsylvania
“Leading candidates across the nation recognize that families are hurting, and that programs like the expanded, monthly Child Tax Credit play an essential role ensuring parents can put food on the table,” said Keep Families Afloat Steering Committee Member Dylan Hewitt. “We’re certain that if politicians campaign with the CTC at the forefront, voters are sure to take notice. Among the most popular policies from the Biden Administration’s American Family Rescue Plan, support for the CTC – time and time again – leads to a profound impact in electoral support.
“We look forward to working with champions in Georgia, Nevada, Ohio, and Pennsylvania to not only highlight the extraordinary significance of America’s largest middle class tax cut in a generation, but to fight to get the monthly checks going again to help with the rising cost of living.”
To view our political advertisements, visit: https://www.keepfamiliesafloat.org/ads
For more information about Keep Families Afloat visit: https://www.keepfamiliesafloat.org/
Statement from Keep Families Afloat Steering Committee Members on the Democracy Corps Research on “The Key Role The Child Tax Credit Can Play”
Washington, D.C. – July 26, 2022 – “We at Keep Families Afloat are excited and encouraged by Democracy Corps’ new polling research concerning the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and its critical importance in the upcoming midterm elections. This groundbreaking study of battleground and competitive congressional districts – conducted under the leadership of political strategists Stan Greenberg and James Carville – demonstrates that this program is an increasingly powerful motivator among key voting blocs. Democracy Corps research indicates that the CTC is very important not only to former recipients of the tax credit, but also to Black and Hispanic voters, White working-class women under 50, Millennials, and other demographics key to achieving electoral success in November. As the cost of living continues to rise and COVID-19 remains a large economic barrier, millions of families are hopeful that the CTC’s return will keep them out of poverty. The fight to extend the CTC is not over, and this research shows us that if politicians campaign with the CTC at the forefront, we can save this country’s most successful effort in putting an end to childhood poverty.”
Statement from Keep Families Afloat on New Research Spelling Midterm Troubles for Officials if the Child Tax Credit Isn’t Central to Their Message
Washington, D.C. – May 12th, 2022 – Keep Families Afloat, a national initiative launched in April by a group of political strategists and former advisors to President Biden, President Obama, and Secretary Clinton – today released new data on the expiration of President Biden’s expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC) and its potential impact on the upcoming midterms.
This new public opinion polling and voter modeling, released in partnership with Data for Progress, shows that the expanded CTC – passed as part of President Biden’s American Rescue plan – is still highly popular among key turnout and swing voters and elected officials are especially vulnerable to attacks on letting the credit expire. Conversely, the data also shows that those who support the CTC’s renewal can help turn the tide for policymakers among voters that previously received the monthly payments.
Other toplines from this polling shows:
Parents support the CTC by nearly a 40-point margin, with Black voters being the most enthusiastic (85%) followed closely by 80% of Latino/a voters.
Trust for Democrats fell by +9 points when voters heard CTC supporters in Congress “allowed the expanded CTC to expire,” but hearing that CTC supporters in Congress “are fighting to extend the CTC” increases trust among parents of all political stripes.
Parents have moved 15 points toward Republicans since the CTC’s expiration, despite no matching shift among all registered voters. Elected officials can begin to swing back lost support from CTC recipients if they vocalize their support for it, and naming who opposes the CTC moves a generic congressional ballot +12 points.
Half of all key Democratic turnout targets are “CTC Turnout Voters,” which include women and voters of color who live in states critical to the Senate majority: Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Wisconsin, and others. Seven percent of GOP turnout targets are CTC Turnout Voters.
One-third of all persuasion targets are “CTC Parents,” with white and female voters being the most represented and one-fifth being voters of color. These voters live in states with high-profile Senate races as well as toss-up House races: Arizona, California, Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Texas, and others.
“Elected officials supportive of the Child Tax Credit need a reality check: their silence on the CTC is causing a backlash against them, but explicitly talking about who is blocking the checks can be a pathway to electoral success,” said Keep Families Afloat Steering Committee Member Ann O’Leary, former Senior Policy Advisor to Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign and mother of two. “This election cycle is going to make or break the rest of President Biden’s agenda – and, come November, voters will notice who has and hasn’t fought for the Child Tax Credit. We need our leaders to stand up for the CTC right now.”
Since the credit expired last year, nearly 3.7 million children have fallen back into poverty and families have been left high and dry just as prices for basic needs like food, rent, and gas have gone up.
“Failure to revive the Child Tax Credit at a time when families are facing the highest inflation rates in 40 years is a profound mistake,” said Keep Families Afloat Steering Committee Member Dorian Warren, Co-President of Community Change and father of one. “But, let’s be crystal clear about who is to blame: half of Congress opposed the expanded CTC and still opposes monthly checks to immediately offset the rising costs tens of millions of working families face. They should pay the price at the ballot box.”
More than 130 economists recently called for restarting the monthly CTC payments because they will offset the toll inflation is taking on family budgets without making the problem even worse. Unless Congress finds a way to extend the CTC now, officials’ political peril will only grow.
For more information about the Keep Families Afloat visit: https://www.keepfamiliesafloat.org/
Keep Families Afloat’s full research report can be found here: https://www.keepfamiliesafloat.org/strategy
Statement from Keep Families Afloat on Public Opinion Poll Showing Child Tax Credit Recipients Switching Party Support in Midterm Elections
Washington, DC – April 11th, 2022 – Last week, Morning Consult published an article stating that almost 50% of voters who benefited from the American Rescue Plan’s expired Child Tax Credit (CTC) are now less likely to “support Democratic candidates for Congress in this year’s midterm elections.” This is a 15-point Republican shift since December among parents who had been receiving the CTC, despite no matching shift among all registered voters over the same period. As Morning Consult notes, “Americans of all stripes…say they’re feeling economic strain,” which is the same conclusion being echoed by Keep Families Afloat – namely that parents who previously received monthly checks noticed when they stopped coming and may swing to vote against pro-CTC candidates this cycle if politicians are not visibly fighting to extend the vital tax credit for families.
As the cost of living continues to rise and COVID-19 remains a large economic barrier, millions of families are hopeful that the CTC’s return will keep them out of poverty. As political strategist Stan Greenberg recently noted, the CTC is “changing the 2022 political dynamics and will now be central to the campaign contrast [...] It is embraced by both Black voters and white working class voters under 50 years, as well as white parents,” and “has opened up parts of the white working-class to the idea Democrats use government to help them.” The fight to extend the CTC is not over, but it will be if voters do not support the legislators that continue to advocate for the expansion of the country’s most successful effort in putting an end to childhood poverty.
Within weeks of implementation, the CTC lifted 3 million children from poverty. According to the Urban Institute, the CTC would cut the nation’s poverty by 40% if made permanent. In the months that the child tax credit expired 3.7 million children, the same number that was uplifted by the program, fell back into poverty. To keep families afloat and put an end to childhood poverty, we need to fully support the CTC, which means voting for the candidates that will make that happen. The poll conducted by Morning Consult shows directly what will happen to politicians who refuse to reinstate the program.
We hope that all candidates running in this year’s midterms see this same message.
Politically Engaged Parents Launch Keep Families Afloat to Fight for the Child Tax Credit in Midterm Elections
Washington, DC – April 7th, 2022 – Today, a broad array of politically engaged parents, including strategists, elected officials, and activists, launched a new initiative – Keep Families Afloat – focused on supporting the expanded monthly Child Tax Credit (CTC) and calling for increased visibility for the CTC among policymakers, candidates, and voters during this year’s midterm elections. Passed through the American Rescue Plan in 2021, the expanded monthly CTC has served as one of the most tangible and impactful policies over the first year of the Biden administration, helping millions of parents pay their bills while lifting four million kids out of poverty.
“The Child Tax Credit can – and must – be a key component of congressional candidates’ economic agenda,” said Sachin Chheda, Wisconsin political strategist, parent of four, and co-founder of Keep Families Afloat. “With inflation costing families roughly the same amount each month as a Child Tax Credit check, we need legislators in Washington that will fight for programs that ensure families can effectively meet their needs amid rising prices.”
After the expanded monthly CTC program expired in January, an estimated 3.7 million children have since fallen back into poverty, and parents’ economic outlook became gloomier, leading to a 15-point Republican shift since December among parents who had been getting the CTC, despite no matching shift among all registered voters over the same period. Accordingly, recent public opinion polling suggests that supporting the credit is a powerful opportunity for elected officials and congressional candidates, providing a crucial pathway for lawmakers to regain trust amongst voters, particularly parents, and to create enthusiasm among voters less likely to turn out.
“A divided Congress created the expanded Child Tax Credit, and voters are paying attention to who is on their side as the election approaches,” said Assemb. Buffy Wicks, Keep Families Afloat Steering Committee Member, California State Assemblywoman, and mother of two. “Parents that previously received the monthly CTC have taken notice that the checks stopped coming, and they will remember that when they head to the polls.”
Keep Families Afloat will focus its resources on demanding political candidates to address concerns from parents around the CTC, publishing political data demonstrating the importance of the CTC, running visibility tactics like billboards, digital advertisements, and more to keep up momentum. The initiative will also endorse candidates in key races who are speaking up for the CTC’s extension and hold Members of Congress accountable for voting against the program.
“Fighting to extend the Child Tax Credit is more than just a powerful message for candidates looking to build a clear economic message,” said Atlanta City Councilman and Keep Families Afloat Steering Committee Member Amir Farokhi. “It is a lifeline to voters that are growing increasingly fearful of an uncertain economic future.”
The Keep Families Afloat Steering Committee is composed of political parents in key states like California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin, including: Ann O’Leary, Nick Merrill, Addisu Demissie, Marlon Marshall, Buffy Wicks, Aaron Pickrell, Holly Shulman, Sachin Chheda, Natalie Foster, Dorian Warren, Amir Farokhi, Heather Sanders Jefts, Aaron Ostrom, Ben Chin, and Janelle Perez.
For more information on Keep Families Afloat visit: keepfamiliesafloat.org