Voting – Seattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness Blog

Voter Registration & Voting during a Pandemic: August 4 Primary Election Edition

March 2, 2021July 17, 2020 by Alison Eisinger

Help people who you work with register and vote in the August 4 primary, and prepare for the November 3, 2020 General Election! This blog post is supplemental to the Coalition’s Guide to voting for people who are homeless and unstably housed. The Coalition has been helping people who are experiencing homelessness register to vote and vote for over 11 years. We want to make sure that folks know that their voices matter and are important, and that You Don’t Need a House to Vote! This year our August Primary Election on Tuesday, August 4 includes voting on Federal Congressional Representatives, State Governor, Lieutenant Governor and other leadership positions, and State Senators and Representatives. The top two from each of those races will be on the November General Election ballot, along with, of course, the Presidential Election. The Coalition does voter registration and education work because: We want to end homelessness and to do that we need to build political power. Voting is fundamental to political power. You will help with this. We want to make sure everyone’s voice is heard, want to help people who don’t have a home know that they can vote. We need to spread the word about Voting Rights Restoration for people with felony convictions. Due to COVID-19, this summer we are unable to send our volunteers out to help register voters (typically we sent trained volunteers to day and hygiene centers and meal programs), so we want to make sure that service providers have the tools you need to support people you work with in registering to vote, updating their voter registration, and voting. As a reminder, it is completely okay and legal for 501c3 nonprofits to help people register to vote, and provide education about the mechanics of how voting works. It is …

July 16, 2020 Coalition Membership Meeting

February 17, 2021July 13, 2020 by Alison Eisinger

Statewide Eviction Moratorium The temporary statewide moratorium on evictions is set to expire August 1, which if not extended will put thousands in our community at risk of homelessness.Thank you Edmund Witter for explaining the eviction moratorium and sharing tips for service providers with clients involved in the eviction process, you can find a copy of his presentation here. And thank you Michele Thomas for sharing advocacy efforts underway to protect renters. WA’s eviction ban faces uncertain future, leaving renters in limbo, David Kroman, Crosscut Take Action: Tell Govenor Inslee to Extend the Eviction Moratorium through March 2021 JumpStart Seattle Advocacy Update Coalition Executive Director Alison Eisinger helped us celebrate the passage of JumpStart Seattle tax legislation and discussed the active conversation around the JumpStart Spending plan (which will be voted on very soon.. This legislation will “raise over $214 million per year in progressive revenue to respond to the immediate COVID crisis and focus on Seattle’s long-term economic revitalization and resiliency by investing in affordable housing and essential city services.” Take Action: Send a thank you message to the Seattle City Council for passing JumpStart Seattle, and encourage the Mayor to sign the legislation into law. Seattle Budget Advocacy Alison also talked about the City Council’s current work on the 2020 balancing budget and previewed the fall budget process (click here for a schedule of upcoming meetings). The Seattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness has signed on to the Decriminalize Seattle priorities to defund the SPD by at least 50%, reallocate those funds to community led health and safety systems, and release protesters arrested during this uprising without charges. Defund SPD teach-in recording: Learn more about efforts to defund SPD and reinvest in community-based and led responses to build health and safety. Voter registration and voting during COVID-19 Click here for …

June 15, 2017 General Membership Meeting: Seattle’s RFP for Homelessness Services, CEA Listening Session

March 5, 2019June 16, 2017 by Alison Eisinger

Thank you to the 100+ people who filled the room for our June 15 General Membership Meeting! It was an important agenda (click here to view): a presentation and discussion about Seattle’s Homelessness Services RFP with Catherine Lester, Director of Seattle’s Human Services Department, as well as a Coordinated Entry for All Listening Session with Mark Ellerbrook, Regional Housing and Community Development Manager with King County Department of Community and Human Services. Handouts and materials related to these presentations are at the bottom of this post. We shared timely information about State (ESHB 1570 & Budget) and County (Veterans, Seniors, and Human Services Levy) Advocacy priorities as well as the Coalition’s Voter Registration work. Please follow up on the Action Alert below! Did you fill our our Voter Registration & Candidate Questionnaire survey? If not, click here to let us know what information you want people running for elected office to know about homelessness, plus, information about voter registration work at your organization. Take Action Today! There are crucial issues before King County Council and the State Legislature — Lawmakers need to hear YOUR voice! Veterans, Seniors, and Human Services Levy Renewal: Let King County Councilmembers hear from YOU as they decide whether to increase (yes!) or reduce (no!) Executive Constantine’s recommended funding package and put the levy before voters this November. Send a personalized note to County Councilmembers: Renew and extend the Vets, Seniors, and Human Services Levy. Help close the gap between what people in our community need and deserve, and what we are providing. Build on Executive Constantine’s proposal to ensure robust continued support for helping veterans, families, and seniors across King County. Take Action: Online Action: tinyurl.com/speakupVSHSL Call your King County Councilmember The State Legislature is currently in special session as they determine which programs to fund in the …

Voting for the first time at 63: “I felt like I was a part of society.”

February 17, 2021November 7, 2016 by Alison Eisinger

Dennis first connected with the Coalition on Homelessness on our bus to Housing and Homelessness advocacy day 2016 in Olympia. He then attended our first Beyond the One Night Count Advocacy 101 workshop and said it changed his life and that he was amazed by how easy advocacy could be; he came to the second workshop later that week and shared his story of calling the legislative hotline in Olympia and how easy it was to speak up for issues he cared about! Since then, Dennis has been trained in voter registration and is an active volunteer for both Voter Registration and Project Cool. He helped us get out the vote this November to make sure people knew how to turn in their ballots, and also voted for the first time. Dennis wrote these powerful and moving words about his experience. Thank you Dennis for reminding us why we do the work we do! Dennis’ Powerful Message About Voting: After working with Hillary Coleman this election year, learning how to register people to vote and helping them with information on where to cast their ballots and how to put the envelopes together to mail out, I finally, at the age of 63 voted for the first time. I had lost my right to vote in 1968 because of a felony, and was supervised by the department of corrections until 2012. That is a long story in itself. What I would like to share is the feeling of dropping the ballot into the ballot box today. I had this very new and strange feeling like I finally belonged to something. I felt like I was a part of society. That my vote does count, and I do have a right to vote. My self-esteem shot straight up, I felt like I had meaning and my …