SOME aims to have 100% voter registration among its guests, residents, and staff. We invite the DC Board of Elections (BOE) to our Main SOME campus approximately twice a year, to answer our guests’ questions and to help them register or change their addresses. Our most recent outreach took place in the SOME parking lot adjacent to our Dining Room in March 2022!
The BOE will come again in April. They registered about 20 people to vote most recently and answered any questions about the upcoming election, staff and clients alike. Ballots will be sent out by mail again this year, so SOME will help facilitate client voting through the mail program.
SOME’s mail program is designed for those without a permanent address to have their mail safely and securely held. You cannot receive an ID without a mailing address, so we act as that address when people are in need of one. We are above 4,000 names enrolled in the program now, showing the need in the city for safe places to have mail sent.
The upcoming elections are especially important since primaries are in June this year. The mayor is also up for reelection.
Nechama Masliansky, Senior SOME Advisor, says that “SOME wants everyone to be able to voice their needs and opinions, so we encourage all staff, residents, and clients to register to vote. That way, you can help decide who becomes your lawful representative in public offices (in DC: the Mayor, City Council Members, Area Neighborhood Commissioners, and other representatives).”
She adds, “These decisions affect what becomes law and what doesn’t, and what kinds of programs or policies get funding and which don’t. In other words, a real step to build up power is to register to vote and then to vote!”
According to U.S. Census data from 2020, as many as 1 in 4 eligible Americans are not registered to vote. Every year, millions of Americans find themselves unable to vote because they miss a registration deadline, don’t update their registration, or aren’t sure how to register. National Voter Registration Day wants to make sure everyone has the opportunity to vote. SOME’s goal is to provide everyone with the information they need so guests, residents, and staff can make informed decisions.
To keep up to date with SOME’s advocacy network, find more information at SOME.org/News-Events/Advocacy
For Board of Elections information, go to DCBOE.org