Voter registration lags in Colorado amid lockdowns, distancing

Heading into the 2020 election, Salvador Hernandez, the Colorado state director of Mi Familia Vota, was hoping to register at least 12,000 new voters as part of the group’s mission to activate the Latinx voting base.

Then came COVID-19.

Plans to reach teenagers in high school classes had to be put on hold as classes went online. The festivals and concerts where volunteers could reach new voters were cancelled. Even Department of Motor Vehicles offices, where voters are registered when renewing or applying for a driver license, were closed for weeks.

Hernandez had hoped to kick off Mi Familia Vota’s registration effort in earnest in March, just as social distancing restrictions and lockdowns started, forcing the group to retool and watch as registration numbers dipped.

“We were expecting by now to have some ground covered in that goal,” Hernandez said. “We’re still committed to our goal, but we’ve had to adjust our timeline. For a group like ours that does grassroots organizing, this has really affected our ability to reach the community.”

Read more:
https://coloradonewsline.com/2020/07/13/voter-registration-lags-in-colorado-amid-lockdowns-distancing/