Voting – Page 2 – Seattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness Blog

Voting in the Tues. November 3, 2015 General Election: Ballot drop-box locations & Important Dates

February 17, 2021October 12, 2015 by Alison Eisinger

The Coalition on Homelessness needs YOUR help to make sure that everyone in our community knows how to vote in the November 3, 2015 General Election. This year the Coalition and Member Organizations, thanks to great staff and volunteers, helped 188 homeless and unstably housed people register to vote, and we want to make sure that each of them, and anyone else you work with, know how, when, and where to turn in ballots, as well as what to do if they haven’t received their ballot. Please share this information and call King County Elections (206) 296-VOTE (8683) if you have any voting related questions. Another opportunity to TAKE ACTION: Join Coalition members on Tuesday, October 20 at the Seattle City Council Budget Hearing (Seattle City Hall: 600 4th Ave, Seattle, 98104) to tell your elected officials why it is necessary to fully fund Human Services. Check out this Action Alert from the Seattle Human Services Coalition for more information. We need your help to fill the room in support of human services. IMPORTANT ELECTIONS DATES: Tuesday, October 20 Ballots are mailed to registered voters 20 days prior to the election. If you have not received your ballot by Tuesday, October 20, call King County Elections (206) 296-8683. SPREAD THE WORD – put up a sign in your building to alert folks to call King County Elections if they haven’t received their ballot, and to let them know where to drop off ballots near your location. Monday, Oct 26 In-person voter registration deadline for people not currently registered in WA State. Your new registration must be received in-person at either the Renton office: 919 SW Grady Way, Renton, WA 98057-2906, or Seattle office: 500 4th Avenue, Room 440, Seattle, WA 98104. Tuesday, Nov 3 Election Day! Ballots must be dropped at ballot drop box …

Voter Registration 2013: Complexity in ensuring every voter counts.

February 17, 2021October 9, 2013 by Alison Eisinger

If registering to vote or voting itself were as easy and simple as we would like to think it is, then I would not have needed to volunteer on Friday or Monday. It has been over four years since voting rights were restored for people with Washington State felony records so long as they are no longer under Department of Corrections. (Even more, a person with a federal felony conviction or felony conviction in another state never lost their right to vote in Washington.) And still, on Friday and Monday, I stunned a handful of individuals when I told them, “No, you can actually vote! Here’s a pamphlet about it – I’m not lying to you!” One man, older in age with a youthful spirit and appearance, looked at me with a wide-eyed, winded expression and quietly said, “I’ve never voted, never been able to. I can’t believe this.” We shook hands and smiled, one registered voter to another. Although voting rights were never revoked for people who are homeless, it takes a lot of extra understanding to know how to register. Another man, who apologized for smelling ‘wet’ because he had been out in the chilly Seattle rain the past three days, told me that he could not vote because he is homeless. “You absolutely can, no matter your housing status!” Still surprised by this news, he and I walked through the form, using the 2013 Voter Registration Guide to explain the difference between ‘residential address’ and ‘mailing address,’ and how to fill both of them out when one is homeless. After the form was signed and dated, the gentleman thanked me for walking over to him in the first place. His wheels still turning, he inquired, “Can the Voter ID card help me get a license?” I looked at …

Making sure EVERY VOTER COUNTS

February 17, 2021October 22, 2012 by Alison Eisinger

Here at SKCCH we are passionate about providing voter registration and information for people experiencing homelessness. SKCCH interns and volunteers spent the last two weeks out in the community providing information and helping people to register. We went to shelters, day centers, and food banks and helped 70 people register to vote or update their address. Many times we heard people say, “I can’t vote,” and in most cases we were able to respond, yes you can! Although legislation was passed in 2009 that restored voting rights to people with felony convictions, many people are still unaware of their rights. We were able to inform people that as long as they are no longer under D.O.C. supervision, their voting rights are automatically restored. This is the first presidential election since that legislation passed and people were excited to register once they heard they could! One man came through the line to get a sandwich for lunch and we asked if he was registered to vote and he told us he was not registered because he couldn’t register to vote. We asked him why and he said that thirty years ago he had committed a felony. We then told him that he could ABSOLUTELY register to vote. At first, he was skeptical, but we explained the new law to him and told him that as long as he was no longer on parole he had the right to vote. Seeing the joy on his face once he found out he could vote was amazing. He told us that he had wanted to vote all his life but he had thought once he committed a felony his voting rights were stripped away for life. We then helped him register, and as he completed the form, his face began to light up; he …