Recently there have been programs celebrating the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment August 18, 1920 by the last of the necessary 36 states. I particularly enjoyed the 2-episode PBS series on “American Experience” called “The Vote.” These episodes are still available as YouTube videos

(Part I and Part II.) Whenever I hear a statement like “The 19th Amendment guaranteed the right to vote to all women in America,” however, I cringe.

In 2013 a Supreme Court ruling stripped away federal oversight of state election law from the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Need for this oversight in states with a history of discrimination was demonstrated by barriers to voting like the closure of 1688 polling places between 2012 and 2018. Last December Georgia removed 309,000 registered voters from the voter rolls, nearly 122,000 of which were under the state’s “use-it-or-lose-it” law. This followed the removal of 500,000 voters from their rolls in July of 2017, or 8% of those registered. Of these latter purged voters, 107,000 were similarly inactive. On December 6, 2019, a measure passed the US House of Representatives restoring these oversight protections, but it has run into a brick wall in the Senate.

Illinois has no such “use-it-or-lose-it” provision. Assuming you are registered to vote in DuPage County, you should have received a Vote by Mail Application, but if not, here is a link to that document so you can print it, fill it out, and mail it in. Directions on how to vote by mail provided by the League of Women Voters are here. Illinois online voter registration can be done by holding your smart phone camera over the QR code at the top of this column OR by clicking here. If you register online however, and if you vote in person either at an early voting site or on November 3 at the polls, be prepared to show identification and to take the extra time for signature capture. Additional information may be found at the DuPage County Election Division of the County Clerk’s office

The Downers Grove Public Library is presenting a program called “Safe, Secure, and Accessible Elections” on September 3 from 7-8pm. To register, click here!

The DG Library also has helpful information on their Voters’ Corner at the link here. You can check your registration, find out what you need to register and get important dates related to voting.