Stitt, Moore call for dignity as governors launch bipartisan center

Kevin Stitt and Wes Moore used the National Governors Association’s summer meeting in Oklahoma City to launch a new Center for Dignity in Politics, a bipartisan effort with Dignity.Us aimed at reducing polarization and promoting civil discourse. The Oklahoma Republican, who was serving as NGA chair, and the Maryland Democrat, then vice chair and preparing to take over the chairmanship, made the case for civility as they closed out a meeting that ran July 30 to Aug. 1 and brought together governors, first spouses, staff and public- and private-sector leaders.

Their appeal landed against the familiar structure of American primaries, where the electorate is smaller and often more ideological than the voters who decide November contests. Over the past four congressional primary cycles, states with fully open primaries averaged 21.9% turnout, compared with 18.5% in closed primary states. Nationally, nearly 4 in 5 registered voters failed to cast a ballot in the 2024 primaries, and Nevada’s 2024 primary turnout was 16.22%, with 323,948 ballots cast out of 1,997,488 active registered voters.

The governors’ push for dignity also ran through the NGA’s Common Ground town hall with NBC News moderator Kristen Welker, where Stitt and Moore discussed restoring civility in politics and government. The session was part of a broader effort to encourage civil discourse.

Stitt also used the meeting to push for rules on artificial intelligence in political campaigns. Moore launched his Service United campaign as his signature initiative for the year leading NGA. The center will equip governors with tools to foster respect, reduce political polarization and strengthen democratic culture.