Storm-Ravaged North Carolina Rallies Voters

Oct 31, 2024

With just days left before the presidential election on Nov. 5, all eyes are on a handful of so-called swing states鈥攁 direct outcome of the United States鈥� electoral college system. Party nominees are holding endless rallies and campaign events in states such as Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, and North Carolina, and grassroots activists are engaged in a frenzy of get-out-the-vote (GOTV) efforts.聽

In storm-ravaged North Carolina, there is an added complication of climate disaster in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, with thousands, grieving lost loved ones, and dealing with devastated infrastructure, a ruined economy, and shuttered businesses.聽

Erica England, strategic partnerships coordinator at , is leading GOTV efforts in North Carolina and spoke with 大象传媒 Senior Editor Sonali Kolhatkar on 大象传媒 Presents: Rising Up With Sonali about the top concerns for voters in this swing state.

Sonali Kolhatkar joined 大象传媒 in summer 2021, building on a long and decorated career in broadcast and print journalism. She is an award-winning multimedia journalist, and host and creator of聽大象传媒 Presents: Rising Up with Sonali, a nationally syndicated television and radio program airing on Free Speech TV and dozens of independent and community radio stations. She is also Senior Correspondent with the Independent Media Institute鈥檚 Economy for All project where she writes a weekly column. She is the author of聽Rising Up: The Power of Narrative in Pursuing Racial Justice聽(2023) and聽Bleeding Afghanistan: Washington, Warlords, and the Propaganda of Silence聽(2005). Her forthcoming book is called聽Talking About Abolition聽(Seven Stories Press, 2025). Sonali is co-director of the nonprofit group, Afghan Women鈥檚 Mission which she helped to co-found in 2000. She has a Master鈥檚 in Astronomy from the University of Hawai鈥檌, and two undergraduate degrees in Physics and Astronomy from the University of Texas at Austin. Sonali reflects on 鈥淢y Journey From Astrophysicist to Radio Host鈥� in her 2014聽聽of the same name.