You can vote!

With the 2024 election nearing the finish line, we all have witnessed the bombardment of numerous political ads, yard sighs, and mail urging us to vote.

Voting is considered one of the most important rights of American citizens and the hallmark of our Republic. Yet, for too long, many citizens with disabilities were excluded. Indeed, many polling places were inaccessible to disabled voters in some way.

People who use wheelchairs or other mobility aids, such as walkers, were unable to enter the polling place to cast their ballot because there was no ramp. The blind or those with low vision could not cast their vote because the ballot was completely inaccessible to them.

But changes, starting with The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA), The Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act of 1984 (VAEHA), The National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA), and The Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) and technology have opened the ability for the disabled to participate in our elections.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that approximately one in four American adults have a disability ranging from hearing, vision, cognition and mobility. A Rutger University study indicated that17.7 million people with disabilities reported voting in the November 2020 elections.

This year, according to Tom Mortenson, PhD, a local civic/community leader and advocate of good government "one of the biggest hurdles is educating members of the disabled community that they have the right to vote.

Voters in Hillsborough County have several options to make it easier for voters with disabilities to cast a ballot,” according to Mortenson.

According to "The Colonel" Tom Mortenson, The Supervisor of Election website (https://www.votehillsborough.gov/VOTERS/Voters-with-Disabilities) details three ways of casting your vote if you are disabled:

1. Voting In Person with Assistance. You can bring an assistor with you or request assistance from our poll workers when you arrive to vote in person.

2. Voting In Person Using an ExpressVote Ballot Marking Device. The ExpressVote ballot marking devices display your ballot on a screen and allow you to mark your ballot privately and independently, with the help of audio, enlarged text, braille, sip and puff, and other features.

3. Voting By Mail Using an Accessible, Electronic OmniBallot. OmniBallot is a remote ballot marking system that allows you to receive and mark your ballot at home on your computer. You must then print the ballot and return it in a signed Vote By Mail envelope.

“People with disabilities have lifetimes’ worth of experience that our Nation can benefit from, and their vote can help shape our American future. I urge everyone with a disability or if you know someone that is disabled to vote in this upcoming election” Mortenson said.