Our scheduled visit to the jail has been rescheduled for early March due to a Covid outbreak that put two of the six units on lockdown, so it was decided to allow sufficient time to complete the outbreak cycle before committing to another date.
Incarcerated individuals will be registered in time for the Presidential Primary on April 2nd. Two LWVMHR members and two Board of Elections staff members (one Republican and one Democrat) will offer forms and assistance to properly fill out registration and absentee ballot requests. The BOE staff takes all forms directly to the office for processing and provides us with the numbers of each form filled out at the visit.
While Ulster County has trained LWVMHR volunteers for this activity, more are needed. There are a total of three opportunities this year and we will be there for all. Please consider joining us. If interested, please email me at cindylwv@gmail.com and I will provide you with the contact information I have for Ulster County. That’s all it takes to get started.
Our contact person at the jail let us know that at least one person has expressed interest in registering to vote. Our past participation and the result was well worth the effort to make it happen.
Members from other counties are encouraged to contact their county sheriff’s office to find out how to become a volunteer. In Ulster County, extensive personal information is required, as well as a training session that lasts two hours. We are fortunate to have Sheriff Juan Figueroa support our efforts, as well as facility staff to work with us.
All sheriff’s offices throughout the state have been contacted regarding informing individuals about their rights as established by NYS Election Law and effective in 2023.