Over the past seven months, GE’s Statewide Outreach Organizer Shannon Clawson has been on the road, registering LGBTQ Georgians and our allies to vote. Here’s her latest update:

With the deadline for voter registration approaching THIS TUESDAY October 9th, the Super Voter Team is winding down and reflecting on what we have accomplished so far. For seven months, the Super Voter team has been driving all over Georgia registering citizens to vote. We’ve gone to VA Hospitals, MARTA Stations, Universities in Morrow, Macon, Lawrenceville, Gainesville, Atlanta, Athens, and Augusta. We’ve gone door to door in LaGrange, canvassed at ColGay in Columbus, and visited churches in Stone Mountain. We’ve registered voters at five different Pride Festivals in five cities this summer and enjoyed engaging our beautiful community all over this state. In all, we have registered 3,130 Georgians in 15 different counties! We couldn’t have done it without our dedicated volunteers, team leads, and partner groups all over the state.

Personally, I have been touched by the young teen in McDonough County that was not old enough to register on National Voter Registration Day, so she made sure to bring her two over-eighteen friends to our table so they could register instead. Then there was the gentleman in Columbus that was once convicted of a felony over a decade ago, but had been off paper for many years. When he learned at Colgay that he was eligible to register and vote this fall, he began shouting “I have rights!” to anyone passing by. I’ve also been touched by our staff and volunteers. People with limited mobility knocked doors in 95 degree heat. One canvasser overcame a true personal phobia to register voters. Others worked 14-hour days driving to festivals, engaging the public for hours, and schlepping supplies to and from cars. Their dedication and passion is overwhelming, and it made a true difference to the 3,000 Georgians we registered.

But we aren’t stopping with registration! We have already begun contacting Georgians all over the state. We’ve made 208 phone calls, mailed 317 letters, and sent 2,287 texts to make sure registrants have what they need to vote: ID’s, information on candidates and knowledge of their polling locations. Democracy works best when people participate and we are doing everything we can to make sure all Georgians have that chance. Coming up, we will be collecting pledge to vote cards at Atlanta Pride, marching in the Little 5 Points Halloween Parade, and participating in Party at the Polls! If you want to help ALL Georgians vote this fall, email me at email hidden; JavaScript is required to find out how you can get involved!