By Luis Lozada, Democracy Works CEO
At Democracy Works, our mission is to help Americans vote in every election. And this month, I almost missed out on voting in an election myself.
A few weeks ago, I received a TurboVote notification on my phone. There was an upcoming special election for a vacant Florida State Senate seat in my district. I follow elections closely, but special elections like this can fly under my radar.
Why am I not as tuned into local races? Well, I am a New Yorker living in Florida. Modern modes of media consumption, and my obsession with the NY Mets, Knicks, and football Giants keep my focus in the New York television market. When it comes to local news, I am more likely to watch Spectrum NY 1 rather than anything in Tampa (and the same goes for newspapers).
But back to the notification: I clicked the message from TurboVote and immediately found the information I needed to vote. I read about the candidates, reviewed the third-party endorsements on the ballot guide, and found myself genuinely excited to participate in an election I otherwise might have missed. I also found myself telling my neighbors about the election too, and encouraging them to look up the details in TurboVote.
We tend to frame the conversation about civic engagement on infrequent voters, and the importance of reaching those who need to be convinced that their vote matters. But sometimes it's the engaged, informed voters who can miss an election without realizing it. Life gets busy. The news cycle is loud. Special elections don't always appear in our feeds, even for the people who are looking.
That's exactly why TurboVote exists. Not only to reach the disconnected — but to help remind the rest of us, too.
You can sign up to receive free reminders on TurboVote here.
And, if you're in Florida's District 13 or 14, there's still time to vote for this State Senate seat. Don't let this one slip past you.
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