Fears that the pandemic would squelch voter turnout have been very, very wrong.
“I have never seen anything like this, so this is great. This is heartwarming,” said Debra Cleaver, founder of the voting rights nonprofit VoteAmerica.
Cleaver said the U.S. makes it harder to vote than most nations, so add in a pandemic and turnout could have been even lower than usual.
“This year in 2020, voters know it’s hard and they’re not letting it deter them,” she said.
The early and mail-in voting turnout has already broken records, but Cleaver says over 4.5 million Californians are eligible to vote but have not registered for this week’s election. And for those voters, it is not too late to have their say.
“You can register to vote on election day. It’s amazing,” said Cleaver.
While California’s voter registration deadline passed last month, it is one 21 states that offers same-day registration. Voters who sign up after the cutoff can still vote, but their vote will be held until elections officials confirm that they are in fact eligible.
“Just bring any photo ID and any document that shows your name and your current address like a utility bill, a bank statement, a paystub. You’re gonna fill out a voter registration stub, and then you can vote,” she explained. “It’s wonderful.”
You can sign up at your county elections office or any polling place or voting center.