Voters braving a pandemic, shouldn't have to struggle to find their closest polling location.
It's easy for Georgia voters to get confused, and many end up not voting. Consider the complexity:
- A few counties offer drop boxes for absentee ballots.
- Early/advanced voting locations in Georgia's Primary elections allow voters to vote anywhere in their county.
- General Election voting is at precincts: voters must vote at their assigned precinct.
- The official Secretary of State website offers the caveat: "Polling locations are subject to change. Click here to access the official polling site locator. For more information, contact your state election officials."
Volunteers with NAACP Georgia are helping voters in the June 9th primary election with 'smart' peer-to-peer texting. Volunteers text voters individualized guidance including details on their closest early voting centers.
Smart texting
Andrea Miller is the Founding Board Member of the Center For Common Ground (CCG) and a volunteer with the Georgia NAACP. She recognized the urgent need to inform voters about their closest Vote Center to avoid confusion and increase voter turnout.
Most voters are accustomed to voting at their precinct polling center. Vote Centers are a new offering and organized by county rather than precinct. Voters can vote at any Vote Center in their county but it's often confusing to find the closest vote center. This causes long lines at some vote centers while others are under used. The need to help voters find the closest center is growing as several states including Arizona,Texas and Nevada now also have Vote Centers - National Council of State Legislatures (NCSL).
CCG teamed with DemLabs to design Text Per Cent, a peer-to-peer texting system that lets volunteers send customized messages to voters including details on their closest Early Vote Center. The system finds the closest early voting center in that county using a proximity search between the voter's address and available centers. CCG can now help even more voters as it costs just one cent to send a text Text Per Cent.
Georgia voting primer
Please use to the Georgia Secretary of State Election website for official details as voting information is subject to change. Georgia has 13 Congressional districts and 254 counties.
The Center For Common Ground offers an interactive map of absentee ballot drop boxes and Early Voting Centers for the June 9th primary.
Counties in Georgia
Georgia voters can use any Vote Center in their county.
Some counties offer absentee ballot drop boxes as well as early voting centers.
In the general election voting is by precincts within a county.
Take away
Voters face many hurdles. Confusing requirements. Difficulties in getting vote-by-mail ballots. Few absentee drop boxes. Distant polling locations. Limited hours to vote. Long waiting lines to vote...
Make it easy for voters to find their closest voter center with Text Per Cent. Learn more here.
Deepak
Co-Founder, DemLabs
Please share this blog. DemLabs (a project of the Tides Advocacy Fund) is a SF-based, progressive hub for ongoing technology and creative innovation with free and affordable apps. Donate here to support our work.