First off, we sincerely hope you’re planning to vote. Even if you don’t like either of the candidates, one of them will be president, and you should have a say in which it is. Secondly, we hope you have a plan for casting your ballot. Why? Because voting is often a pain, and if you don’t have the logistics figured out before the big day comes around, you may end up failing to do it. Here, five steps that will set you—and our already-pretty-great nation—up for success this November 8.
Your 5-Step Voting Plan
If you enter "how to check that you're registered to vote" into Google, it will organically direct you to your state's appropriate website. Note: If you registered to vote by mail but haven't received your ballot by Election Day, you can still vote at the polls.
Google has us covered on this one as well. If you enter "how to find my polling place" into the search engine, it'll prompt you for your address and then provide you with the location.
Polls open at 7am and close at 8pm. (Note: You just have to be in line by 8pm in order to be allowed to cast your vote.) Look at your schedule right now and carve out a time to vote. Then, put it in your calendar and set an alert for the day of. Finally, send a calendar invite to your boss so he or she will know not to expect you in the office at that time.
Unless you get lucky, lines are going to be long. Bring your laptop, a book, your best friend—whatever it takes to help you wait out what could end up being a large portion of your day. We also suggest bringing water, snacks and maybe an apocalypse survival kit—just in case.
You won't only be voting Trump v. Clinton on November 8, so you'll want to show up prepared with knowledge on the other issues you'll be asked to help decide. If you haven't yet received a booklet outlining your state's ballot measures, you can use this KPCC resource to find the information you need. In California, measures concerning things like marijuana legalization, the death penalty and gun control are all on this year's ballot, so these votes are not to be cast lightly.
