A COVID-19 relief package that prioritizes the needs of older adults, affordable health care, retirement security, equal access to important programs like Medicare and Medicaid, and so much more are all on the table in this election. Older adults, who have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, must have their voices heard.   

Voting by mail and early voting are both options for older adults to exercise their right to vote safely and securely.  

• To vote by mail, voters must be registered to vote and request their ballots before their state’s deadline. They also need enough time to return their ballot, by mail or in a designated drop-off location, before Election Day. This article has the deadlines for voting by mail in every state.  
• Early voting has already begun in many states across the country. This article includes the dates that early voting starts and ends in each state.  

The national, nonpartisan Election Protection program is available to all voters who need information or assistance at all stages of voting, and has helplines in multiple languages to assist voters who encounter problems.  

There are many specific resources available to advocates and older adults to help navigate potential legal and logistical barriers to voting:  

• Administration for Community Living: Voting Resources for Older Americans and People with Disabilities 
• Caring Across Generations: Guide to Voting While Caregiving and Guide to Voting with LTSS  
• The Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law: VOTE. It's Your Right. Guide to the Voting Rights of People with Mental Disabilities 
• National Council on Aging: Healthy Voting 
• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): Memo Reaffirming Nursing Home Residents' Right to Vote 
• National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center: Voting Resources 
• American Bar Association Commission on Law & Aging and the Penn Memory Center: Assisting Cognitively Impaired Individuals with Voting: A QUICK GUIDE 
• National Guardianship Association: Guardians: Protecting the Right to Vote 
• Center for Civic Design: Language Access and New Citizens 
• The Arc: Disability Voter Guide 

As advocates, we can utilize these resources and engage with partners to make sure that all older adults have the information they need to have their voices heard in this year’s election.