Mid-Term elections are right around the corner on November 6th and this is a critical election, one of the most, in US history. In order to make change within the current house, senate and congress we all must exercise our right to vote! Lyft and Uber want to get American’s to the polls for this election to vote.
Per Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning & Engagement (CIRCLE), in 2016 it was estimated that over 15 million people were registered but didn’t vote because of transportation issues. Lyft and Uber want to change that by providing free or discounted rides to the polls so Americans can vote! Both just rolled out their plans for Election Day and below are their unique goals, initiatives and guidelines.
Lyft
Lyft will be providing 50% off rides across the country, and free rides to underserved communities that face significant obstacles to transportation. Lyft has also partnered with When We All Vote and National Voter Registration Day to ensure Lyft’s passengers, drivers, and broader community are prepared for Election Day. Below are Lyft’s initiatives for Election Day.
Lyft’s details on their Election Day plan include:
- Across the country, Lyft give away 50% off promo codes with our partners that encourage voter turnout. Lyft will be to be working with Vote.org, Nonprofit Vote, TurboVote and more to help distribute codes to those who need them.
- Have a product integration to help passengers find their polling location.
- For underserved communities, we’ll provide rides free of cost through nonpartisan, nonprofit partners, including Voto Latino, local Urban League affiliates, and the National Federation of the Blind.
- Remind Lyft passengers about voter registration deadlines using various social media and platform tools (e.g. push notifications).
- Give drivers voter registration handouts and key voter information at Hub locations.
- Offer in-office voter registration for employees at Lyft offices.
- Offer comprehensive, online voter information through Lyft’s partner organizations.
- Encourage the Lyft community to make a plan in advance for Election Day, which has a proven impact on voter turnout rates.
For more information about the Lyft Election Day services please visit: https://blog.lyft.com/posts/2018/8/22/get-out-the-vote.
Uber
On Tuesday, November 6, anyone in the U.S. will be able to quickly find their polling place and book a ride to go vote with their polls button. In just a few taps in the Uber app. (Make sure you’re using the latest version of the app.) They have partnered with #VoteTogether and Democracy Works to provide free rides to the polls.
Below is Uber’s plan of action during Election Day:
- Uber will provide free rides to the polls to help the millions of Americans who cite transportation barriers as the reason they don’t vote.
- Uber has partnered with When We All Vote to provide our customers with easy-to-use voter registration tools. They have begun sharing registration resources with riders through the Uber app
- Uber will also be emailing information about how to register to vote to drivers and delivery partners across the United States.
- Uber will be hosting voter registration drives at more than 125 U.S. Greenlight Hub locations around the country to help register as many eligible voters as possible before their state’s deadline. These driver support centers will have local registration resources on hand, so drivers and delivery partners can come easily register to vote in person. Find a Greenlight Hub near you at uber.com/drive.
- Any campaign or organization can use existing Uber for Business offering to purchase and distribute promo codes for rides to the polls on Election Day.
More information is available at www.uber.com/business. Here is Uber’s official press release on the free rides for Election Day: https://www.uber.com/newsroom/drivethevote/.
We previously published an article on mid-term voting places by state and dates for each state on deadlines of registering to vote located here: https://www.hi-techchic.com/mid-term-elections-are-around-the-corner-register-to-vote-using-vote-org-before-its-too-late/. If you haven’t registered yet to vote please visit: https://www.vote.org/. Don’t forget that Election Day is November 6th! Let’s make a difference this mid-term election!
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Source: Uber, Lyft, Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning & Engagement (CIRCLE)
