Voting ideas

Guest post from Complete PR (www.completepr.net)

With the presidential election coming up, many people are encouraging their peers to practice their “civic duty.” This term can indicate many different responsibilities, even including performing jury duty. However, one of the most significant responsibilities this year is one of the simplest: voting.

Many people are hesitant to vote this year due to the risks involved with being around people, touching the same machines as everyone else has, etc. There is good news, though: the entire process of voting can be done from the comfort of your own home.

The first step in voting is registering to vote, or ensuring that you are still registered to vote, as finding out you are not by the time you’re at the polls would be less than ideal.. Fortunately, ensuring that you are still registered to vote is incredibly easy. Simply visit vote.org and click on the top link that says “Check Your Registration.” The entire process takes less than a minute; all you need to do is enter your first and last name, as well as your home address, and it will tell you whether or not you are registered.

If you are not registered, either because of a voter purge or because you have not registered to vote yet, it is not too late to register. You can register to vote on vote.org, or, if you would rather do so through scvotes.gov, you can there as well (you can also check your voter registration on this page). This is the website for the South Carolina Election Commission, and, while vote.org is secure, some people may feel more comfortable going through the process on their state’s election page. The deadline to register to vote online is October 4 and to register in person is October 2. The presidential election this year is incredibly important, but there are some landmark state and local elections, too. On

scvotes.gov, you can request a sample ballot, which will show you every election in your precinct. If you are not sure who to vote for, a resource such as ballotpedia.com to research the candidates for that position.

We understand if you feel hesitant to vote in person, given the risks associated with in-person activities. However, you can request your absentee ballot online. SCVotes has more information here so that you can determine the method of voting that makes you feel safest and most comfortable. Ensure that, if you plan to vote via mail-in ballot, you request your ballot before October 24. If you want to vote early in-person, it begins on October 5.