What are you doing on November 5? I doubt most of you have everything planned out, and it’s even less likely you carved out time to go to the voting booths. While 57% of people aged 18-34 say they are “extremely likely to vote,” the chances that everyone in that category makes it to the voting booth are slim.
What if you get sick? What if you don’t have a car on campus? Or how about that big organic chemistry report you’ve been procrastinating? On Election Day, other plans are bound to pop up that seem more immediate or important than traveling off campus to cast your ballot. As a student, your first job should be school. As an American, your top priority should be exercising your right to vote.
Even if you are planning to vote in person, those registered to vote in Florida should request a vote-by-mail ballot. Vote-by-mail ballots make voting easier for busy students and don’t require leaving campus. Just as the name indicates, you can have your ballot mailed to you, vote, and then return the ballot by mail (or in person).
USPS recommends people mail the ballot back at least one week before the polls close, or by Oct. 29. UM has both USPS and UPS on campus, so there are multiple avenues to easily submit your ballot. Both stores sell envelopes and stamps for less than $2. In Florida, the deadline to register to vote is Oct. 7. and the deadline to request a vote-by-mail ballot is Oct. 24.
For many college students, this is the first presidential election that we are eligible to vote in, so I understand if you’re dead-set on having the in-person voting experience. To make voting even more accessible, Florida also offers early voting. Miami-Dade County’s early voting period begins Oct. 21 at 7 a.m. at more than 30 locations in the area.
Even though voting in person seems super doable, request a vote-by-mail ballot anyway! If you bring your vote-by-mail ballot to the polls, marked or unmarked, you can turn it in and vote at the booth like normal.
For students registered to vote out-of-state, request an absentee ballot for the state you’re registered in. Students can find more information about absentee voting at Vote.org and the National Association of Secretaries of State. Due dates for absentee applications are state-dependent, so be sure to submit forms accordingly.
In an election predicted to be very close, your vote matters. It’s better to plan for the unexpected than to leave yourself in a lurch: ballotless, unable to get to a voting booth and not participating in our democracy.