Your voice, your vote
Your voice is your vote, and on November 3, 2020, we will not be silent. We're doing our part to make sure all Americans exercise their constitutional right to vote in the general election. Even if you think you are registered, it's critical that you triple check your voter registration in your state right now. Many states close voter registration 30 days before the election. That's coming up fast on October 3, 2020.
Between 2016 and 2018, at least 17 million people were purged from voter rolls, many in swing states like Wisconsin and Ohio. Georgia purged 200,000 voters in the lead-up to the primaries in 2019. Indiana purged nearly a half million voter registrations in 2017, or 22.3% of voters. (Sources below.)
Check on your registration here: www.vote.org/am-i-registered-to-vote/
As our country continues to grapple with the impact of COVID-19, it is more important than ever that voters have fair and safe access to registering and voting. No American should ever have to make the choice to risk their health or the safety of their family to cast their ballot.
Here are 4 ways you can act right now:
- Get Informed: Learn about the voting policies in your state and get to know your options for registering and voting by mail.
- Share with 3 Friends: Let them know how to get registered to vote, vote early in-person, or vote-by-mail.
- Call or email your federal legislators and let them know you support expanding access to vote-by-mail.
- Volunteer at the polls: Since Americans do not get a paid day off of work to vote, many poll workers are often senior citizens who are retired. The pandemic puts this population at a higher risk, so it's critical that more young, healthy people volunteer at the polls. Sign up to be a poll worker here: powerthepolls.org
Further reading
Want to learn more about voting in America? We created a reading list (for all ages!) on Bookshop.org full of historical context and contemporary insight, from the women's suffrage movement to the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to the modern assault on democracy.
Sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/dec/31/voter-purges-republicans-2020-elections-trump
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/04/voter-purges-wisconsin-republican-election/
https://www.npr.org/2020/08/05/894331965/wanted-young-people-to-work-the-polls-this-november