Voting is Social Work Creating a culture of voting in organizations, schools and other practice settings Nancy A Humphreys Institute for Political Social Work

What are some reasons people don’t vote? They think their vote won’t count. Don’t know where to vote Didn’t know about the election Don’t know candidates Registration requirements Too busy Vote

Why don’t more organizations encourage people to vote? Don’t want to be seen as political Don’t know process Too busy Don’t know that it’s legal (and perhaps mandated by law) Don’t see voting as form of empowerment Vote

What is a CULTURE OF VOTING? When organizations embed voting into their work with clients and communications with staff. Voter registration and education is not a one-time event but an ongoing “conversation” about; Registration; Information about where/when/how to vote; and Encouragement to get to the polls on election day! Nonparti san Vote

Questions to consider… Registration Do you have relationships with clients? When would be a good time to ask whether they are registered? How do you know when someone moves? Are their opportunities to run voter registration drives at special events? Who will collect voter registration forms? Will you include pledge cards to increase the likelihood people will vote? How can you encourage staff to vote? Do you have any materials about voting in your offices? Vote

Pledge Cards Vote

Questions to consider… Education When is the next election? Where are the polling places in your community? Do staff and clients know where to find this information? Who are the candidates running in the next election? Are there issues important to your community? Would it make sense for you to run a candidate forum? Can you partner with other nonprofits to engage the community? Vote

Questions to consider… Outreach Do you collect pledge cards? If so, how can you remind clients to vote near the election? Do you have marketing materials encouraging people to vote? Do all staff remind people to vote and help them find when and where? Vote

How do we support voting in… Schools? Community organizations? Hospitals? Mental health clinics? Others? Vote

Thank you and next steps Live webinar 12:00pm PST For questions, contact the Humphreys Institute at Or got to for resources.