At My Choice Wisconsin, our staff regularly receive uplifting emails from our Member Advisory Committee. These feel-good messages make our week and we’re pleased they have agreed to include you in sharing their positive thoughts!
Today’s shout out goes out to the MAC’s own chairperson, Duazong (Dee) and her advocating efforts regarding disability voting rights!
Dee has been working with the Wisconsin Disability Vote Coalition and earlier was year was featured in a newspaper article. Last week she spoke at a press conference about some of the current bills regarding voting that are being proposed here in Wisconsin. Dee’s particular voting advocacy passion has to do with being an indefinitely confined voter. An “indefinitely confined voter” is a person who (because of age, physical illness, infirmity, or disability) may have difficulty traveling to the polling place, and they want to cast an absentee ballot. Wisconsin’s indefinitely confined statute has been on the books for decades.
In Dee’s own words: “This past November, I was able to vote in the presidential election through an Absentee Ballot. For the past few years, I have been registered as an indefinitely confined voter. This means that due to my disability, I am able to vote by absentee until further notice. As a result, as each election nears, a ballot is automatically sent to me without needing my consistent request.
This has been such a great thing for me as it is hard for me to move around and leave my home due to my own physical limitations. I feel that as a citizen, my right to vote is important and it is my responsibility and privilege to be able to vote. Having the ability to indefinitely vote through absentee allows me to not worry about needing to constantly request a ballot for each election. I know that my vote will hold the same value as those who are able to go into the polling place to vote.”
If you would like to learn more about current disability voting efforts in Wisconsin or possibly find out how you too can make a difference, you can go to the Wisconsin Disability Vote Coalition website at www.disabilityvote.org.