If you’re turned away, vote provisional

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Across the United States this midterm election, voter suppression tactics are on the rise. These tactics are being used to keep voters from their constitutional right to participate in our democracy, and Kansas is no exception.

About two and a half hours west of Wichita, Dodge City election officials have been heavily scrutinized for only opening one polling location outside of town for all 13,000 voters.

Some voter suppression isn’t as blatant, however. Some voters are turned away at the polls when election workers tell them something is wrong with their registration.

If that happens to you, demand a provisional ballot. A provisional ballot is used to record a vote when a voter’s registration is in question and needs to be verified before the vote can be counted.

When you are given a provisional ballot, you will be asked to also fill out a voter registration form. Once the ballot is filled out, it will be sealed in an envelope pending review of the voter’s registration by law.

Don’t leave the polls without casting any sort of ballot, whether it be on machine or on paper.