Video by Talia Diller
Music: "Success Story" by Lukas Got Lucky (Epidemic Sound)

Who are we?

Wisconsin is a swing state. Every presidential cycle, UW-Madison students show up in force. The energy is real, and it matters.

But local elections, the races that decide your rent, your bus, your block, run on a different clock. They happen year round, often with little fanfare and even less coverage. And the information environment most students live in was never built to cover them.

That is the gap. And it is closable.

The Local Gap is a student-run civic information project dedicated to closing the distance between campus and city hall. We highlight stories of students engaging with local democracy and representatives who are showing up for young people.

But more than anything, we are here to equip you. With the information, resources, and context you need to actually participate in the democracy happening right outside your door.

Here you will find voter registration resources, guides to finding your local representatives, plain-language explainers on policies affecting student life, and upcoming election information for Madison and Dane County.

The future does not only get decided in November of a presidential year. It gets decided in the races that shape the city you actually live in every day.

Local elections are decided by small margins. Student voices move them.

This site exists to give you every reason and every resource to use yours.