If you’ve been watching the news recently or have a social media account, you’ve probably noticed that there are some very important elections coming up in America. Celebrities including Sophia Bush, Rihanna and Taylor Swift have even taken a stance on political issues and have been urging fans to register to vote – and it’s working. It seems all anyone can talk about is the midterm election, and as college students, this is something we should be paying attention to. Anyone who is a legal citizen of the United States and is over 18 is eligible to vote, and this describes a large percentage of students at Lafayette. Here is everything you need to know about the midterm elections including what’s on the ballot, how to register to vote, and how to show up on election day (or turn in those absentee ballots if you’ll be out of your county on election day).
What’s on the ballot?
This first step in being an informed voter is knowing what you’re voting on. The midterm elections happen every 4 years and occur 2 years after the president has been elected or reelected – midway through their current term. When someone refers to the midterm elections, they are most commonly referring to the elections that affect Congress – that is, which representatives and senators are being voted on. During the midterms, every congressional seat in the House of Representatives is being voted on because representatives serve 2-year terms, though they can be reelected. As for the Senate, senators serve 6-year terms so every midterm there is about ⅓ of the Senate being voted on. This year there are senators being voted on in over 30 states including Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey, three states that many students who go to Lafayette are from.
The reason the midterms are so important this year is because both the House of Representatives and the Senate have a Republican majority under a Republican president. If just one of these develops a Democrat majority, this will present more checks and balances to our current president and thus will limit his abilities to push things through Congress.
In addition to voting on representatives and senators, thirty-six state governors and three U.S. territory governors are being voted on as well as many city mayors. Also on the ballot will be other local offices and city ordinances to be voted on, which varies by both which state you are from as well as what county you live in.
A great tool to use to see what is on your ballot is headcount.org, a website where you can put in your address and see what will be on your specific ballot including your local elections. Once it pulls up your ballot, Headcount takes you to ballotready.org where you can click on your candidates and see their stances on issues such as reproductive rights, healthcare, gun reform, and education.
How to Register to Vote
The first step in voting is making sure you are registered to vote. While many state’s deadlines have already passed, it is possible you were already registered when you obtained your driver’s license. You can check if you are registered by going to vote.org and putting in your voter information. If you are not registered, you will want to check your state’s deadline to see if you can still get registered.
The deadline to be registered in Pennsylvania has already passed, so you can no longer register to vote from school, but if your state’s deadline hasn’t passed you can register to vote there and fill out an application for an absentee ballot.
Obtaining an Absentee Ballot
If you will be out of your home state on election day, you can get an absentee ballot and vote by mail. This also applies if you are going to school out of your county and will not be able to go home on November 6th to vote or at any point during the early voting period in your state.
Because voting laws are different in every state, you will want to find your local election office website and use it as a resource to determine deadlines for applying for an absentee ballot in your state. This can be done at usa.gov, which can show you both your state’s election website with statewide deadlines as well as your local election office website, where you will need to send in your application for an absentee ballot as well as your final ballot.
In order to obtain an absentee ballot, you will first need to apply for one. This can be done online or by mail, depending on your state. If you do it by mail you will need to mail it to your local election clerk in your county. After you mail in your application, if you are deemed eligible, you will be sent a ballot. It is important to note that there is a deadline for mailing in your application. Vote.org has a list of absentee ballot deadlines that list when you must apply for your ballot by and when you must submit it by. Most applications must be received on election day not postmarked, this means you should send it in early enough that the election office will have received it by November 6th.
Showing Up to The Polls
If you are not voting with an absentee ballot, you will have to go to a polling place to vote in person. This can be done either on election day (November 6th) or during the early voting period. It is important to note that not every state does early voting, and some states only allow early voting with a valid excuse. The National Conference of State Legislatures has luckily compiled a list and interactive map of states, showing which ones allow early voting, no-excuse absentee voting, and which states don’t allow early voting at all. In addition to this, the start and end dates of the early voting periods are provided.
In order to vote in person, you will need to show up to the polling place assigned to you. Polling places are assigned based on where you live and it is very important you go to your designated place. For the most updated information on your polling place and hours, or to request an accommodation, contact your state/territorial election office. If you cannot find the information online, don’t hesitate to call your local election office and ask.
Most states require some form of ID to vote in person, which can either be a photo ID or non-photo ID depending on the state. The National Conference of State Legislatures has also compiled a list of Voter ID laws.
Finally, if election day shows up and you do not think you can make it to the polls – there are resources! Both Uber and Lyft are partnering with non-profit organizations to provide free or discounted rides to the polls on election day, in addition to providing ways to find one’s polling location. It is important you take advantage of this, as the turnout for college-aged students at the polls is notoriously low. Registering to vote is not enough, you must go to the polls in order to have your voice heard.