Grimes Takes GoVoteKY.com Tour West to Henderson

NEWS RELEASE

HENDERSON, Ky. (Sept. 16, 2016) – Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes today took her GoVoteKY.com Tour to Henderson Community College. The tour is part of Grimes’ nearly yearlong voter registration effort, one of the largest in the Commonwealth’s history. She is encouraging Kentuckians to register to vote using Kentucky’s new online voter registration portal and to participate in the Nov. 8 general election.

“I’m excited to be in Henderson as we travel across the Commonwealth for our historic voter registration drive. Already about 40,000 citizens have either registered to vote for the first time or updated their registration online with GoVoteKY.com,” said Grimes. “Online voter registration has truly transformed Kentucky’s elections.”

Grimes’ Fall tour has included stops at Simmons College of Kentucky, Bluegrass Community and Technical College, Georgetown College and Somerset Community College. By the voter registration deadline on Oct. 11, Grimes will have made nearly 20 stops this year on the full tour of Kentucky universities, colleges and community and technical schools in all parts of the Commonwealth.

“It was a pleasure to have Secretary Grimes on campus to share GoVoteKY.com and election information and to honor Constitution Day. The high school and college students in attendance – along with community members – were very engaged in the GoVoteKY options,” said Kris Williams, president of Henderson Community College.

Grimes’ visit with the overflow crowd from across Western Kentucky included discussions on the future of the Commonwealth’s elections, including a pilot project for electronic poll books, and the benefits of online voter registration – especially with cost savings and improvements in accuracy of voter rolls. Grimes also continued to express the need for early voting in Kentucky.

“GoVoteKY.com made it easier to register. Now, we have to make easier for Kentuckians to cast their vote. We regularly hear from folks who ask why Kentucky is not one of 37 other states offering early voting. We’re trying hard – and we need your help! Call your county clerk and state representatives and senators and ask them to back our plan,” Grimes told today’s attendees.

The Commonwealth’s lackluster voter turnout trend must be reversed, Grimes said. In the 2015 general election, only 30.6% of registered Kentuckians cast ballots statewide. In May’s primary election, just 20% of registered voters participated.

“We have to fix this. Democracy depends on people who participate. Voting is not just a right, it’s a responsibility. Let’s get more people to the polls on Nov. 8,” Grimes said.

The Fall GoVoteKY.com Tour includes stops at nearly a dozen of Kentucky’s colleges or community and technical schools ahead of the Oct. 11 deadline to register to vote for the general election. She will visit Centre College, Big Sandy Community and Technical College, and Hopkinsville Community College next week. More information about the tour is available at sos.ky.gov.

 

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