Getting her an ID was not the end of VoteRiders’ assistance to Mercedes. My colleague Jazlyn called her as part of our routine follow up to all our voter ID assistance recipients, reminding her to vote. That’s when we found out she had been displaced by Hurricane Ian and couldn’t afford to make it back to the polling place where she had registered to vote. She had given up on the idea of voting in the midterms.
We told her VoteRiders could get her to her polling place, free of charge. She was thrilled! The next day, we sent a Lyft to pick her up and take her to her polling place and back. “It made my day. It’s so important to me as a citizen to fulfill this duty,” she said. “Thank you very much, Lyft and VoteRiders!”
I’m proud that we were able to help Mercedes navigate and overcome the barriers she faced to make her voice heard in our democracy. We could not do this work without the support of our donors, who pay for the ID fees and transportation voters like Mercedes need, along with organizers like me who can spend time with voters in their communities.
Donate now to our $25,000 year-end goal and help me ensure that everyone in Florida has the voter ID assistance and education they need to vote with confidence in the next election!
Thank you,
Eli Garcia
Florida Voter ID Coalition Coordinator
VoteRiders
