Laura Herrera

Laura Herrera has been our collaborator for Back to the Ballot since 2018, when we hosted at Art Share in Downtown LA. We started with a simple mission: create a space where people can ask “dumb” questions out loud, break down the ballot, and get more people registered to vote. What came out of that first event was a PDF that’s been widely shared that we (she lol) put together every election cycle: Understanding WTF is on the Ballot.

We produced B2TB in 2020 when we had to do an all-masked production at Kim Sing Theatre, a wedding venue that our friend generously donated to us when their celebration plans were halted during the pandemic, then at Shopify’s space in 2022, and LOVE HOUR earlier this year. We’ll be back at LOVE HOUR again on Sunday, Oct 20th.

Admittedly, we’re not excited to vote, but we hope you’ll join us either way.

Photography by Lauren Lotz

Back to the Ballot with Laura Herrera

Date: Sunday, October 20

Admission: FREE

Try becoming an educated voter

Where are you from and where do you live now?

I’m from the “City of Perfect Balance” and the home of “La Pacific,” Huntington Park, California. Now living in Los Angeles in the West Adams neighborhood. <3

When did you become interested in voting?

Activating a core memory. I’ve loved voting since my grandma took me inside the voting booth when I was 4 years old and let me poke the holes in her ballot. Our polling place at Salt Lake Park was run by the same group of Huntington Park ladies each time who gave candy to voters once they submitted their ballot. I remember feeling like I did something *significant*. My grandma explained to me that voting was our civic duty and that’s how we can contribute to our country. I was hooked after finishing that piece of wrapped strawberry candy. Voting was the coolest thing and I couldn’t wait for the next election!

Have you felt the shift in how politics are feeling in the past few elections?

I’ve absolutely felt the shift and, man, it didn’t feel good. I was in college when Barack Obama was elected. I still remember feeling the electricity in the air on Election Night 2008 when we celebrated at LMU’s Political Science Village. I was one among a lucky (and FREEZING) crowd at his Inauguration in 2009. HOPE, we all felt it and we all lived it. Was he a perfect president? No, but at least we felt that things were getting better. Witnessing the cataclysmic shift in politics in this country post Obama has been gut wrenching. In tandem with a global pandemic, an unsteady economy and the necessity of the “Me Too” and “Black Lives Matter” movements, holy shit. What the eff happened?

How do you cope?

Protested when I had it in me; retreated when I didn’t. Protected my heart and mind as much as possible when it all felt like too much. At the time, I worked on the team that transformed the voting system in LA County and it was outside of politics, but the epitome of the best of what the government can do. It felt like it was bigger than me and I was changing the world. 

Now, I feel an even harder shift. I’m the farthest away from the epicenter of government that I have been in my career. I work in the private sector now and even though I work exclusively with public agencies, I still feel that separation. In some ways, it’s a welcome change, because things don’t seem to be getting better. 2024 has been a whirlwind and I miss those days when watching CSPAN would put you to sleep, not give you nightmares. Make politics boring again! 

When I’m exhausted from the state of the world, I lean into life. I think it’s so critical that you find happy spaces with family and friends. I’ve had a whirlwind of a year personally too and I’ve been prioritizing my new role as a wife and stepmom. I’ve leaned into love.

I know presidential elections are so big, and vital but can you share why you (and we for B2TB) like to focus on local elections?

“All politics is local.” This has been my mantra since 2008 when my Political Science professor taught me these essential words. My continued motivation is still to encourage people to effect change on the local level. Everything that impacts our daily lives— water, electricity, roads, trash, traffic, infrastructure, construction, housing, health care, schools, jobs, air, safety, food, etc...— it’s all controlled and regulated by the government and those people we elect make decisions that impact our lives. You have the power to elect the people who decide the quality and quantity of the services that touch every part of your life. Our government is so layered, especially in LA County that your vote for local officials and measures set the priorities for the issues that matter to you the most. And these races can be decided by the slimmest of margins. That’s why it’s important that you vote for people who you believe have the community’s best interest in mind, rather than self interest. Trust me when I say that the self-interested and sell outs rely on those who don’t vote and think their votes don’t matter. Apathy gives them the most power.

— Laura Herrera

Do we really have the power as one person to make a difference?

Yes, absolutely. I witness this every day. My friend Dorenyse immediately comes to mind. She was a teacher in Ramallah, Palestine in the summer of 2013. When conflict escalated in Gaza last year, she immediately and courageously raised awareness of what was happening through social media and daily interactions, sharing stories and spreading news from the very start. Because of her activism and unwavering spirit, she opened my eyes and heart to the reality of a genocide unfolding in front of us. At the beginning, she was one of the only voices in my immediate circles and has inspired many many many people to stand on the right side of justice. She protests, she speaks and she is heard. I am thankful for her messages and activism because I learned so much from paying attention to what she continues to say. It’s people like her that grew our collective awareness of truth and this type of activism changes the world. 

Remember where we started this year. This WAS a presidential race between two old white men. And people were heard. One debate changed the course of this race because we said enough is enough. We need better. We need a fighting chance. Is it a perfect choice? No, but it’s a hell of a lot better than where we started.

What do you do when you’re feeling hopeless about the state of our government?

… cry. Yes, I’ve cried a lot. But I fight the urge to check out. It’s a privilege I don’t feel I have when I think our democracy is at stake. I’ve made it a personal fight. As a woman, as an ally, as a latina, as a child of aging parents, and now as a wife with a husband in the middle of a long immigration process, I have a lot to lose if an administration regains power that makes it clear they will strip all those things away. 

Truthfully, in all the years we’ve been doing B2TB, this is the first year that I thought I didn’t want to do it and that’s why it was more important than ever to push myself. I can’t let hopelessness win. If I’m crying about the state of the world now, I don’t even want to imagine what a world will look like if I just let our basic human rights disappear. 

One of the most poignant things I’ve read, probably while doom scrolling, was “Vote for the administration you’d prefer in power as you continue to protest.” The work doesn’t end on November 5 or January 20, that’s when it restarts. I’ve always and will continue to vote for people that give us a fighting chance to be heard and affect change. My vote is not a blanket acceptance of all their actions and beliefs, but it’s a vote of confidence for them to do the work they promised while we continue to fight.

— Laura Herrera

How can we enact change in a forward motion?

Vote. Speak truth. Spread awareness. Volunteer. Donate. Organize. Protest. Get informed. Feel sad when something makes you sad. Get mad when something makes you mad. Don’t let that stop you from fighting and caring. 

You can also be realistic about what sparking change looks like. You don’t have to be on the steps of Capitol Hill singing “School House Rock” to feel like you’re contributing to change. If you’re mindfully absorbing news and talking to your circle of trust about it, you’re doing it. If you’ve donated to a cause or organization that you believe in, you’re doing it. Find what you’re most passionate about, and just don’t stop doing it.

Our new tagline is “events for people who want to try.” Our question for you is: is it okay to try? For you, in your professional path, in life, what has made it okay to try?

It’s okay to try, because I say it’s okay to try. Now that I’m 37, I care so much less about what people think about my choices. As long as I’m being a good person who is following my heart, mind and spirit, any choice I make is the right choice for me. If it doesn’t work, I have the strength, fortitude and the love of those around me to inspire me to dust myself off and try again (cue Aaliyah).

— Laura Herrera