Welcome
Welcome! This is a voting guide for the Bryant University community. Here you will find general and state resources with information on how to register to vote, request absentee or mail in ballots, and vote in person.
This document gives you general information on voting, including websites with voting information and resources for the entire country.
Use this Google doc to find voting information for your state. There are links to check your voter registration, register to vote, request an absentee or mail in ballot, and government websites with general voting information.
This post also contains information about fact-checking resources, how to be an informed voter, and Bryant University voting resources.
Make sure your voice is heard this November!
Voter Registration
College students can register to vote in EITHER their home state OR the state in which they attend college. You can register to vote at the following websites, Rock the Vote or Vote.org. At Rock the Vote, you can also check your registration, find information about election dates, voter ID laws, and absentee voting. At Vote.org you can check to see if you are registered, register to vote, find polling places, and locate more information about voting in your state.
Already know what you need to do but just need a reminder on deadlines? Use the U.S. Vote Foundation election date and deadlines tool to quickly look up the deadlines in your state.
Are you registered and reminded about deadlines, but need information about ballots and candidates? Use Ballotpedia to find out what is on your ballot and Vote Smart: Facts Matter to find unbiased information on candidates and elected officials.
Now that you are ready to vote, help spread the word and get other people to vote. According to the United States Census Bureau, only 66% of eligible voters voted in the 2020 election. Surprising, right? If you want to take an active part in promoting community on your campus, here are some resources to get you started: Motivote and Rhode Island Elections.
How to be an informed voter
However you vote, early, in person, or by mail, you want to be knowledgeable about the candidates and issues on the ballot. To be an informed voter, you need to be able to recognize real news from fake news and be able to navigate political rhetoric. This is a great skill to use in your classes too!
Web Literacy for Student Fact Checkers is a useful resource to help you start evaluating news and information sources. This is an online book that will give you “concrete strategies and tactics for tracing claims to sources and for analyzing the nature and reliability of those sources.” (Caulfield 1)
Are you unsure of where to fact check information? Use the following sites for reliable fact-checking of the information you read and share.
Factcheck.org - A project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. It is a nonpartisan, nonprofit “consumer advocate” for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics.
Politfact – A not-for-profit national news organization owned by the nonprofit Poynter Institute for Media Studies that looks at statements made by politicians and rates them for accuracy.
Punditfact – A companion website to Politfact, Punditfact checks the accuracy of claims by pundits, columnists, bloggers, political analysts, the hosts and guests of talk shows, and other members of the media.
Snopes – An independent fact-checking site owned by Snopes Media Group, Inc. The website provides links and documentation to sources for evidence based and contextualized analysis.
How to Spot Fake News
Source: Indiana University East Campus Library. (2017). What makes a news story fake [Graphic]. http://iue.libguides.com/fakenews/index
How to find reliable news
- Read, watch, and listen to a variety of news coverage. Check out this media bias chart from Ad Fontes Media to see where news sources lie in respect to reliability and bias.
- Check out news from the following reliable sources. Most are open access, and some are free if you have a Bryant email. Some have limits on the number of free articles you can access in a month.
- New York Times
- Providence Journal
- Wall Street Journal
Why You Should Vote
Check out this video of Tim Paige, Vice-President of Human Resources, as he explains why he always votes.
Blog Post Curated and Written by Rebecca Marcus, Digital Services and Research Librarian and member of Bryant Votes