This Election Should Not Determine the Fate of Libraries (But it Might Have)

The conventional wisdom is that libraries are a local matter. It was a given that library funding and policies were decided by local voters across hundreds of local zip codes and that the top of the ticket and national politics don’t matter. Last night, as we watched local election results roll in across the country, we still believed that maybe - if given the opportunity - people would support libraries, the First Amendment, and the right to access diverse collections. 

This ended on Election Night, 2024. 

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Libraries have never been immune from political and social movements, but we have behaved as if we are somehow a special place, a place apart from these fights. The last three years of censorship and discrimination fights should have been a wake-up call for our library organizations, stakeholders, advocates, and allies. Before the pandemic, we were under direct attack by anti-tax groups who questioned the legitimacy of our institutions. Now, state-by-state efforts to criminalize books and label the profession as offenders are succeeding. 

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Last night, American voters elected politicians who proposed defunding libraries while slandering library workers. The previous Trump administration proposed gutting federal funding for libraries every year he was in office. Project 2025's stated anti-library aims are clear. EveryLibrary has been shouting about the threats to public libraries, school libraries, academic libraries, and the people they serve for months. We are committed to working in coalition with local, state, and national libraries and allied organizations to oppose the framework and proposals embedded in Project 2025. 

The future of our public, academic, and school libraries cannot be taken for granted. Last night’s results are not a temporary problem. Without some intervention to combat misinformation around libraries and library workers, voters will not suddenly realize they were wrong about their lack of support for these institutions. We have seen too many states pass laws that look like Project 2025, that throttle access, discriminate against minorities, and threaten librarians and educators. They have demanded that librarians lose access to their professional associations. We have seen local attacks on libraries and the freedom to read across the country from Huntington Beach, California to Glen Ridge, New Jersey. Over a dozen states have enacted or attempted to enact legislation calling for prosecuting librarians and library workers. 

We expect these threats to increase in depth and scope.

The library industry will need to do significant work over the next four years to mitigate potential cuts to library funding at the local, state, and federal levels. We must come together as an industry and commit to expending significant resources to alleviate pressure from these threats. This will include organizing communities, providing resources to citizens to push back locally, and raising and spending significant funding on national campaigns to combat misinformation about the role of libraries in American society.

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Libraries on the Ballot Last Night

Election Day 2024 was mixed for libraries on the ballot across the country. EveryLibrary identified and tracked 73 individual libraries on the ballot and actively supported seven campaigns with pro-bono consulting and direct donations. As of Wednesday morning, November 6, we have clear results in 67 communities and can share that 54 passed their ballot measures, 13 lost their ballot measure, and one defunding measure (in Arkansas) also failed. This is a 76% “win rate”, which is down from the 10-year running average of 90% wins. Many of last night’s wins were levy renewals in Ohio and annual budget votes in New York. Propositions, levies, and referenda for new funding did not pass as frequently as renewals.

Significant building project wins include a $22 million bond for the Roselle (IL) Public Library District, $153 million for improvements and expansions across the Toledo-Lucas County Library District, a long-awaited $195 million for earthquake retrofits at the Pasadena Central Library, and $110 million to tear down and rebuild the Rose Memorial Library in Stony Point, NY. New funding will come for operations at the Cabell County (WV) Public Library, the Granville Public Library in Licking County, OH., the Olive Free Public Library in New York, the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Library, and Franklin (MI) Public Library among others. In Arkansas, voters rejected a defunding measure targeting the Lawrence County Library by a significant margin. Unfortunately, voters in Jonesboro declined to restore their library levy to pre-defunding levels. New Mexico passed a GoBond for Libraries at nearly double the funding amount from 2022. 

Our seven campaigns faced significant obstacles in going to the voters, and their results were likewise mixed. We are celebrating wins in Marysville, OH where the library overcame fierce opposition from would-be censors to win its must-pass levy replacement. In Missouri, the Marshall Public Library will receive the proceeds of a new ¼ cent sales tax despite opposition from anti-tax and anti-access groups. The Millbrook (NY) Library is nearly doubling its annual budget in order to upgrade and expand the library. West Bloomfield, MI., has successfully replaced and increased the levy to fund new collections, programs, and staffing. 

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Unfortunately, the Rochester (IL) Public Library District failed its third attempt to fund building expansions and operating costs. The Illinois wing of the Koch Brothers’ Americans for Prosperity anti-tax organization fielded robo calls, direct mail, and online ads against the library in the last two weeks of the campaign which tipped opinions against the library. This is the first time since before the pandemic that we have seen the AFP come out against a library so directly. At the time of writing our campaigns in Washoe County, NV, and Livingston Park County, MT are still too early to call. 

For the year, we identified 153 library elections in total. This is a significantly smaller number of libraries going to the voters than in any presidential election year in recent memory. It continues a year-to-year decline that began in 2017 and was amplified by the pandemic. The count of libraries on the ballot matters. In some states, going to the ballot is the only way for public libraries to increase their operating funds or to issue debt for new building projects. If library leaders look at the political or social circumstances and decide against attempting a ballot measure, they will not be able to fund their libraries properly. Over time, collections and programs stagnate without new funding, staff are not replaced, and buildings begin to fall into disrepair. 

In response to this crisis of confidence among library boards and leadership, EveryLibrary is taking action over the next few years to convene a new training and support cohort. This is a significant shift in our work. Since 2012, we have been responsive and supportive of libraries that have decided to go to the voters. With our new training and support cohort, we will proactively identify and encourage libraries that are hesitant or afraid in order to help them to get ready to go to the ballot. We want to see more libraries win their elections, but we need more libraries to have the courage to try.

Fighting for the Future of Libraries Together

EveryLibrary has successfully supported local library alliances that oppose censorship and discrimination. We know how to organize and empower local activists and return books to the shelves. With over 115 local campaigns on our Fight For The First campaign platform, we are winning. Each campaign costs money in ads, rallies, and staff time, but it is well spent. With more would-be censors emboldened and empowered by last night’s elections, we need to redouble our efforts and oppose a frightening future of perpetual censorship.

Counting yesterday’s elections, EveryLibrary has now been the pro-bono partner and guide to 142 libraries on their local funding elections. We are the only library organization working on ballot measures, referenda, levies, and political funding like this. As the national political action committee for libraries, we have the experience, tools, and skills to assist each of our campaigns individually. Since 2012, our donors have made sure that we are there to help each of our libraries succeed. Our mission is clear: we must build voter support for libraries.

We need your help to continue this fight.