Please Share: Emergency Preparedness for Voting
By: Lisa M. Hayes – Confluence Daily is your daily news source for women in the know.
Check Your Status, Make Your Plan, Help Your Neighbors
It’s not that far away. The 2018 midterms are rapidly approaching. I’m not going to spend too much time pontificating about the urgency and importance of these mid-term elections other than to say the fate of our democracy undoubtedly depends on it. We can’t sit this one out because it’s inconvenient – and depending on who you are or where you live it might be very inconvenient.
Voter suppression is a thing. Voter suppression efforts can range from subtle campaign messages that discourage voters from going to the polls to the blatant and potentially criminal tampering with or purging voter registration roles or moving/closing polling place without notice.
It’s real life in predominantly minority neighborhoods when lines at polling places are hours long and people are harassed at the booths about citizenship or identification. And if you think because you might be white you will be excluded from that harassment, think again. Voter registration purges in targeted districts do not discriminate.
So, we’re all patriots right now, in the truest sense of the word. Your vote matters more than you could ever know. It’s time to make a plan.
1. Mark the date on your calendar – November 6, 2018
One of the oldest tricks in the voter suppression playbook is to tell people election day is a different day. I know that sounds silly, but it happens and it works.
2. If you need to register, do it now.
This website has the registration deadlines for every state.
DO NOT LET ANYONE TELL YOU IT’S TOO LATE TO REGISTER WITHOUT VERIFYING.
3. If you’re going to need an absentee ballot request one now.
If you can vote by mail in your state, sign up for that now.
This website gives you all the pertinent info for doing that on a state by state basis.
4. Check your voter registration status TODAY and then check it again about 30 days before the midterms.
5. If you have to go to the polls on election day, make your plan.
If at all possible, request the day off work in advance.
If you are going to need transportation assistance Lyft is offering discounted or free rides. Get on the list.
Think about how you’ll get to the polls if the weather is bad. Check your public transportation schedules so you’d know how to get there if the roads are bad.
6. Vote early if you can.
Even if your state doesn’t have official “early voting” at poll sites, check with the registrar of voters about in-person absentee voting. Your state may allow you to cast your ballot at the county office in the weeks before the election or on the weekend before. In many states, starting about three weeks before Election Day — you can vote during business hours, or you can go there the weekend before the election. Vote early and in person if you have that option instead of relying on mail or waiting until Tuesday evening.
7. Help your friends, family, and neighbors make their plan also.
More by Lisa:
A White Person’s Guide to the 5 Fables that Hold White Fragility Together At the Seams
Lisa M. Hayes, Senior Editor of Confluence Daily.
Confluence Daily is the one place where everything comes together. The one-stop for daily news for women.
