VOTE.
As we get closer to the big day of November 3rd, it has never been more important to ensure every single eligible voter has fair and equal access to the ballot.
Because of increased mail-in votes, turnout for this election is expected to be sky-high – more than likely surpassing the meager 60% turnout of the 2016 election (and we all know what atrocity happened that night).
According to the Washington Post, the city has plans on opening five voting “supercenters” across the city – but none in Wards 7 and 8, poorer areas of the District where voting has had more issues.
DC Entertainment and Sports Arena, the home court of the Washington Mystics, is located in Ward 8 in Congress Heights. Elections officials said no suitable locations existed east of the Anacostia River, says the Post, and that they are attempting to make up for it by providing additional ballot dropboxes.
The chair of the DC Elections Board, Michael Bennett, told the Post that there was an attempt to make the ESA available, but Events DC, which operates the ESA, gave the Board the thumbs-down.
Since the Post revelation, calls have been growing for there to be polling supercenters in southeastern D.C. … including from a notable Washington Mystic herself.
How do we get #ESA to be a central location for wards 7 & 8? Voter suppression and long lines within this community could be the difference. @WashMystics @WashWizards @TheEventsDC @MSE
— Natasha Cloud (@T_Cloud4) September 23, 2020
One of the polling “supercenters” ironically is Capital One Arena, the flagship venue of Monumental Sports and Entertainment, the entity that owns the Mystics, and the former home court of Washington’s WNBA team before last season when the ‘Stics moved from the central DC venue to just outside of it.
Earlier in the NBA season, it announced a plan for its team-owned venues to serve as polling places. This includes several arenas that are home courts for WNBA teams – including the New York Liberty’s Barclays Center, the Los Angeles Sparks’ Staples Center and the Indiana Fever’s Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
The Phoenix Mercury and Suns also secured Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum as a polling place. The Madhouse was set to be the home court of the Mercury this season (due to renovations at Talking Stick Resort Arena) before the coronavirus pandemic forced the W to the IMG Academy wubble in Florida.
The latest update from the Post indicates an about-face from Greg O’Dell, Events DC’s president – and that he will give an all-clear for the ESA to be a polling place if it gets approval from the Elections Board.
Breaking: Amid scrutiny, Events DC President Greg O’Dell says he will make Entertainment and Sports Arena in Ward 8 available as a voting center, should the Elections Board need it https://t.co/6xKRzlBn4G pic.twitter.com/dQ8JsWE6MA
— Michael Brice-Saddler (@TheArtist_MBS) September 23, 2020
November 3rd. Early-voting. Mail-ins. Absentee ballots.
FORTY. ONE. DAYS.
VOTE.
