Local News

The Valley Votes – 2020 Elections Coverage

This year, Valley Public Radio is doing elections coverage differently. We’re asking listeners and residents, what do you want candidates to talk about? Are you concerned about healthcare, housing, or homelessness?We put out a survey from July through October to find out. More than 150 residents throughout the San Joaquin Valley took the survey.The most concerning issue for many is how the economy will recover from COVID-19. Others identified housing and homelessness in local communities as a major issue; others were most concerned for the environment. As we interview candidates and continue our election coverage, we’ll keep these responses in mind. You can keep up with our coverage on this page, or send questions about our process to Laura Tsutsui at ltsutsui@kvpr.org.

COVID-19, Homelessness, The Election: What We Learned From Our Valley Votes Survey

KVPR | By Laura Tsutsui

Published October 30, 2020 at 12:57 PM PDT

With Election Day upon us, we review what issues residents care about, as told to Valley Public Radio through our Valley Votes 2020 survey.

With the election coming up next Tuesday, we wanted to delve into what brings voters to the polls. What do they want changed? What do they want candidates to address in their neighborhoods?

We decided to ask residents using a survey we called “Valley Votes 2020.” We collected over 150 responses. Residents explained with short answers what worried them about their neighborhoods, and ranked their most salient issues.

Responses came from up and down the San Joaquin Valley, with a majority hailing from Fresno County, followed by Kern County.

Listen to the interview above between reporter Laura Tsutsui and Valley Edition host Kathleen Schock to hear more about the survey and what residents said matters most to them.