Voting During a Global Pandemic: A Student's Experience Voting in Person

Photograph

The object is an image of my family and I after voting and holding our “I voted” stickers. The eligible voters in my household are my mother, father, younger brother, and myself. After becoming very invested in politics, my youngest brother, who is eight, got a future voter sticker for coming along. Voting, in general, is a significant task, but this year, with the presidential election, mass amounts of people were expected to vote in person and with mail-in ballots. The pandemic heavily altered what an election usually looks like. Voting in person looked very different and had additional procedures to be cautious. When we entered immediately, we were given a hand sanitizer and a disposable glove to touch the voting machines and ballot. The room setup was different as areas to walk marked off, waiting in line to check-in required voters to wait for six-feet apart from each other. The floors were marked to show directions you could walk in. The voting machines were farther apart than usual to keep everyone at a distance. It was strange to experience a COVID-19 election, especially as this has been an anticipated election for a few years now. Last year I could never have imagined voting in a mask and being given a glove to keep the voting machines clean.
This year is notable for the difficult circumstances of COVID-19 and a year focusing on the historic presidential election.

#coveryourfangs, HS6301, student voter, election, safety, politics, future voter, civic-engagement

Jackie Blackmon

2020-10-27