UPDATE, 10/5/20, 10:34am ET: Today, October 5, is the deadline to register to vote for the general election in 13 states. If you live in the following states, it’s imperative that you get this done today: Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas.
ORIGINAL: Are you registered to vote? With less than two months until the 2020 presidential election, it’s imperative that we all exercise our constitutional right to vote and cast a ballot on November 3. After a disastrously low number of millennials turned out to the polls during the 2016 election (just 50% of people aged 18-29), the need for the young vote is more vital than ever in 2020. Don’t like who’s in office federally, statewide, or locally? This is your opportunity to help change that.
Yes, it’s still September, but it’s essential that you register to vote as soon as possible. Think about it like studying for finals: it’s better to start early and feel silly about being overly cautious, than to be unprepared and miss the deadline. This site is a great resource for finding out the various dates and deadlines for your state’s elections. Here’s New York, for example: to vote in the 2020 presidential election, you must be registered to vote by October 9, 2020.
Now that you’ve figured out when to vote, here’s the skinny on how to vote. Thanks to Article I and Article II of the Constitution, federal and state elections in the United States are run by the states themselves. That means the specifics of how to vote, and how to register to vote, can vary from state to state. It’s important to contact your state of local election office for the exact specifics for your area.
In 37 states plus DC, you can register to vote online. Elsewhere, and addition to these states, you can register through the mail (download the form HERE), or in person. Head to your local election office, the DMV, armed services recruiting centers, or sometimes, state and county public assistance offices. Enter your state HERE. If your state allows online registration, you can do that immediately. Once you’re registered to vote, you can then decide if you want to physically head to the polls on November 3, or vote by mail — an increasingly popular voting method due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Did you know that you can also register to vote here, on HollywoodLife? Simply fill out the form below, courtesy of our friends at Rock The Vote. Now, get out there, and VOTE!
