Election 2020: Many Ways to Vote to Make Your Voice Heard

August 25, 2020 — As we approach our upcoming election, it is important for our communities to understand that there are many ways to vote in the United States. These options can also be confusing and overwhelming. Voting options vary state by state. While some states have passed measures making it easier to vote, others have gone the opposite direction creating further barriers to access voting. States with regressive voting laws have focused their efforts on the disenfranchisement of primarily voters of color. 

Registering to vote deadlines also vary state by state. People must be citizens of the United States and at least 18 years of age in order to be eligible to vote, although some states disqualify people based on their criminal background or whether the person may be in prison on the day of the election. In some states people can pre-register to vote when they are 16 so that they will automatically be registered on their 18th birthday. In addition, some states, such as Illinois, passed a law to allow for same day voter registration, meaning that you need not register to vote ahead of the election, rather, if you are not registered, you can register at the same time that you show up at the polls to vote. It is important for potential voters to understand the deadlines in their own state. In addition, there are apps, such as Voter Pal, that provide the user a simple way to find out deadlines and download voter registration information. However, voters may also go to their state’s Board of Elections website to obtain the details.

Early voting is available in many states. Early voting is an important way to ensure safe and expanded access to voting. States have many different formulas for early voting, some allowing voting ranging from as early as 46 days before the election to just a week before. In some states, there is no early voting option available. 

Voting by mail is now an option in 43 states. Before COVID, only 34 states and Washington DC allowed voters to cast their ballots by mail. Voting by mail allows voters to cast their ballot by dropping it off in the mail, dropping it off at a secure ballot box or dropping it off at the election office in their district. Each state has different deadlines and requirements for voting by mail including when ballots must be postmarked or received by the board of elections. 

There has been a lot of news and misinformation about the differences between voting by mail and absentee voting. Some states use the term interchangeably, but in some states there are significant differences. In some states, absentee ballots put the responsibility on the voter to apply. In other states with “universal mail-in ballots” the state simply sends out ballots or an application for a ballot to all registered voters. In addition, some states allow for a no reason mail in ballot, while others require a reason to request an absentee ballot, such as an illness, or proof that the person will be out of the country on election day, etc. Post COVID,  many more states that now allow for a no-excuse mail in ballot. Whether it is called absentee ballot or mail-in ballot, in the end the effect is the same, voting by mail is a safe way to vote during an unprecedented election year when the world is in the midst of a health crisis and pandemic. 

Not only is it important to vote, but it is critical that we are informed voters. Information about what is in a voter’s ballot is available for voters to review ahead of casting their vote. Ballots include not only presidential candidates, but ballot initiatives, judges, and other federal, state, and local officials. 

As we commemorate the 100th anniversary of the women’s suffrage movement in the U.S. that guaranteed white women the right to vote and recognize that women of color, black women and native women did not gain that right until more than 50 years later, voting is an important part of our democracy and critical way we can make our voices heard. For those who cannot vote, ensure your family members and friends who can vote, go out and vote. And for those who can, no matter how or when you vote, even when you feel like your vote doesn’t matter, it is imperative that we cast a ballot for our families, our communities, for those who cannot, for our children, and for our future. Vote!