Count yourself in

The extraordinary degree of interest stirred by the upcoming presidential election has presented the recovery community with an unprecedented opportunity to amass a voting block that lawmakers will be hard pressed to ignore. Here in New Jersey an effort is already under way to build this constituency. The state was chosen with nine others as part of Faces and Voices of Recovery’s project, Recovery Voices Count. The project has three goals: register voters, educate them, and be sure they cast their votes on November 4.

The effort here in the state is being shepherded by NCADD-NJ and Friends of Addiction Recovery-New Jersey. Faces and Voices of Recovery chose these organizations because they have already taken the lead in these areas, including registering voters at last September’s Recovery Rally and producing an array of educational materials on numerous issues and, for the past eight years, an annual election guide. This guide gives an overview of issues before state and Congressional legislators and surveys them to determine their attitudes regarding addiction policies.

Whether electing a candidate or advancing a cause, numbers are all. It is time for New Jersey’s thousands of individual recovery voices to resound collectively as one, the first step being to register to vote. To join this effort, call 609-477-7012 or email jgrimes @ncaddnj.org.