Twice in my life, I have been privileged to help new Americans learn how to vote.
This wasn’t part of any get-out-the-vote initiative or organized effort, but just one neighbor and friend helping another on an individual basis.
I started early in the election cycle by telling them about the requirement for state voter registration and assisting them in finding the forms to fill out. Then, when the election rolled around, I helped these now-registered and eligible voters find their precinct locations and sample ballots. I suggested ways to study the candidates and issues and pointed them to various bipartisan sources of information. I also demonstrated my own research process.
The day I planned to go to the polls myself, I called these first-time voters and asked them if they would like to come with me. I picked them up, and we ran through a checklist to make sure we had our IDs, voter cards, and any other necessary documents.
Once we got to the precinct, I told them that they were on their own when it came to actually casting their ballots – that they needed to do it alone, without outside interference.
But I introduced them to the amazing poll workers who stand ready to assist voters, new and old. These trained volunteers were more than happy to help them figure out the mechanics of voting. Both times, when we were done, the poll workers asked if they could share with everyone else in the precinct that we had first-time voters among us. Both agreed, and the general announcement received a round of applause from everyone there.
Voting is one of our cherished freedoms as Americans, first set forth in Article I of the Constitution. Many constitutional amendments and federal and state laws over the centuries have codified the process.
Americans have the right to vote in federal elections as soon as they turn 18 or become citizens. This wasn’t always universal. At the dawn of the republic, women, enslaved persons, and those who didn’t own property were excluded from the franchise, but that’s something we have largely corrected.
While voting is a right, it’s one that can be stripped away in some instances, such as treasonous activity or a felony conviction. Some people with diagnosed mental illnesses also aren’t eligible to vote. So, it’s also a privilege.
Choosing our elected leaders at the ballot box is the primary way Americans can make their voices heard. It’s a prerogative of citizenship – one that I am thrilled to share with other Americans, such as the two that I introduced to this civic duty and responsibility. It’s extra special when you consider that it’s a privilege that people around the world who live under authoritarian regimes don’t have.
So I encourage my fellow Americans to find ways to share this manifestation of our freedom and liberty with those who have never before exercised their right to vote: the young people who have just entered adulthood, the newly naturalized citizens, those who have just never figured out how to cast a ballot.
Consider who might want some help figuring out the voting process, and lend a hand. Because our democracy suffers when even one American fails to make their voice heard.
2026 is an election year. Start early, and make it count.
