The Thurston County Auditor’s Office and the Timberland Regional Library have joined forces to introduce the ‘Urge your Neighbor to Vote’ challenge to boost local voter participation in the upcoming elections.
The initiative, led by Mary Hall, Thurston County Auditor, and Cheryl Heywood, Director of the Timberland Regional Library, seeks to address declining voter turnout in local elections.
Hall emphasized the need for local voters to engage their neighbors and contribute to increasing civic participation.
“Voter participation often declines in local elections because voters feel less informed than in higher-profile elections,” Hall said.
Cheryl Heywood pointed out that local voters, who are frequent voters well-informed about local issues and candidates, are best suited to encourage their peers to vote.
“By encouraging frequent voters to host social events and inform their friends and neighbors about the issues and candidates on the ballot, we hope to make voting more accessible and engaging for everyone,” Heywood said.
The Auditor’s Office and the Library District have assembled toolkits for regular voters to plan low-pressure activities that can engage their neighbors.
Ballot party kits, designed to be fun and informative, will be available starting October 18 at various branches of the Timberland Regional Library, including Olympia, West Olympia, Lacey, Hawks Prairie, Tumwater, and Tenino.
Heywood emphasized that the challenge is all about helping people vote who might not otherwise, without pushing any particular political agenda.
To participate in the ‘Urge your Neighbor to Vote’ challenge, frequent voters are encouraged to host social events to assist infrequent voters in filling out their ballots and submitting them.
The Auditor’s Office also urges jurisdictions participating in the general election to pass a resolution honoring National Voter Registration Day and officially join the challenge.
The jurisdiction that achieves the highest voter turnout per registered voter will be recognized after election day, which falls on November 7th.
For more information on the ‘Urge your Neighbor to Vote’ challenge, including guides for hosting a ballot party or other social events, visit the Thurston County website.
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psterry
"... Heywood emphasized that the challenge is all about helping people vote who might not otherwise, without pushing any particular political agenda." Hmmm..........why does the image of truck beds full of voters come to mind?
Monday, October 16, 2023 Report this
SusanF
The League of Women Voters is also a partner in this effort to create Ballot Party Kits and to increase informed voting. Look for our materials in the kit, and watch our candidate forums: lwvthurston.org
Tuesday, October 17, 2023 Report this
KerriG
It would be great if some of these events could be zoom events. I am currently out of town getting medical treatment. I plan to vote and hope my ballot gets forwarded to me. I could not go to in person events but I could zoom.
Tuesday, October 17, 2023 Report this