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Make Housing a Winner on Election Day

Where the candidates in local, state and national races stand on housing provides an important measure of their fitness for office. As a member of this industry, it is incumbent upon you to find out where the candidates stand on the housing issues and to share that information with your friends, neighbors, business associates and customers.

Housing issues are figuring prominently in this year’s presidential and congressional elections. That is no small tribute to the power that home building has demonstrated recently in leading the nation’s economy to higher ground and in increasing the financial health of the record number of American families who are home owners today. It is also an indication of the growing concern in this country over the need for affordably priced housing that will enable our workforce to live in or near the communities they serve. And it is a result of the ongoing efforts of NAHB to ensure that housing receives the prominence it deserves in the current election cycle.

To promote a national housing agenda this summer, NAHB supplied a housing policy agenda for the platform committees of both political parties, and we established a notable presence at the Democratic and Republican national conventions. That included a series of ads in special daily convention issues of the National Journal that made a highly favorable impression on the lawmakers and delegates attending those events. We also hosted receptions for congressional leaders and cosponsored media briefings. We supplied a housing policy agenda for the platform committees of both political parties.

To let our members know the positions of the two presidential candidates on issues that are important to us, we asked President George W. Bush and Sen. John Kerry several questions, and we have published their responses in a special report. At our board of directors meeting in Columbus, Ohio, on Nov. 2 we heard directly from the President about how he intends to increase housing opportunity in this country. For yet more information on the full range of housing policies that need to emerge from the elections, NAHB and four other national groups in Washington have put together a consensus report describing those issues in great detail. All of this is information that will help you make the right decisions for the housing industry and your business on election day.

As the elections enter their final days and weeks, this is also a time for participating in the grassroots campaign efforts that are occurring across the country. Here’s how you can help make a difference:

• Encourage your family, friends, employees, HBA members and their subcontractors to get out and vote.
• Sponsor a fundraiser for your candidate.
• Recruit HBA members and employees to volunteer their time for campaigns.
• Make, distribute and place campaign signs.
• Make phone calls for your candidate.
• Deliver campaign literature door-to-door.
• Assist with campaign events.

Don’t let this political season pass you by. Housing is a major concern of America’s electorate and it is an issue that commands the support of men and women on both sides of the political aisle. This is your opportunity to ensure that when the ballots are counted on Election Day, they will spell victory for the candidates who stand tallest for housing and the American dream.

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