Civic Commons 2020 -- Voting Project Bottlenecks
Challenges in King County's voting process are diverse and multifaceted. Voters face hurdles in submitting ballots on time and accessing drop boxes. Eligibility information is often hard to find, complicating the first step for many.
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Barriers identified in getting a vote counted in King County Submitting the ballot Needs to mail ballot on-time Needs to access ballot drop box Registration Lack of in-language voting process information sources Young family members are key for elder voter participation, but require motivation for engagement Local CBOs do not have sufficient language capabilities for the communities of King County Voter cannot access info on how to register to vote Voter isn't aware of registration requirement Counting the vote Signature on ballot must match DOL ID signature records Insufficient information about how to cure ballots Completing the ballot Must be able to physically fill in bubbles and sign ballot Not known that partial ballots are still acceptable Ballot is too long, ballot fatigue Ballot information isn't sufficiently translated Cannot access candidate/initiative information Lack of a fundamental understanding of US Gov't Language of ballot is too complex and is confusing/misleading Cannot access appropriate mail-in voting instructions Doesn't have access to a printer for mail-in ballots Doesn't recognize the ballot, or thinks that it is junk mail Lack of awareness of ability to request ballot in primary language Eligibility Cannot find eligibility information
