The email below was sent to all MGA faculty, staff, and students on Wednesday, October 2, from Ember Bishop Bentley, vice president for External Affairs and chief of staff.
Dear Students, Faculty and Staff,
The right to vote is the foundation of any democracy. We are weeks away from election day on November 5th. This email serves as a reminder as well as a handy list of information that I hope you will use to ensure our MGA community plans to vote during the upcoming election. MGA has recent strong voter participation – awarded a Bronze Seal by the ALL IN Challenge in 2016, a Gold Seal in 2018, a Silver Seal in 2020, and a Gold Seal in 2022 for our high voter turnout rates.
The deadline to register to vote is Monday, October 7th.
Here is some information to help ensure your voice is heard in the upcoming election:
- Find your voting info – For Georgia residents, check your voter registration status, view your sample ballot, find info on absentee ballots, or find your election day polling location at the Georgia Secretary of State’s My Voter Page. - If you live or are registered to vote in another state, you can find voting information online at allintovote.org.
- Consider early voting - Early in-person voting is available October 15th. Early voting takes place Monday through Friday, and the second and third Saturdays before Election Day. Some polling locations may be open on the second and third Sundays. You can find locations and details on your county here.
- Vote on election day, Tuesday, November 5th – Polls in Georgia are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. EST. If you are in line at 7 p.m., as long as you stay in line you are able to vote. On election day, you can only vote at your designated precinct location, which is printed on your voter registration card or can be found at My Voter Page.
- Bring an acceptable form of photo ID - When going to the polls, you will need to bring an acceptable form of photo identification. A Middle Georgia State University ID card is one of the acceptable forms of ID, as is a Georgia driver’s license, U.S. passport, military ID, or government employee ID. The full list of valid IDs can be found online.
- Volunteer Poll worker - The Georgia Secretary of State’s office is also seeking additional volunteers to provide information technology support at polling locations and election offices across the state. Poll workers and tech workers are paid by the County Election Boards and serve in the county where they are registered to vote. Employees should notify their supervisor of the request to volunteer and submit a request to use appropriate leave. For more information about becoming a poll worker, interested volunteers can find more information here.
- Employees may be eligible for leave on election day as well as early voting – Per the USG policy on voting leave, employees of the University System are encouraged to exercise their constitutional right to vote in all federal, state, and local elections. If election polls are not open at least two (2) hours before or two (2) hours after an employee’s normally scheduled work shift, sufficient leave time must be granted to permit the employee to vote. In this instance, an institution should grant the employee a two (2) hour block of time in which to vote, if needed. Time off under this provision is with pay.
FOR OUR STUDENTS – beyond the voting booth, if you are interested in a career in politics, lobbying, constituent services, etc., the Georgia Legislative Internship Program is a fantastic opportunity to learn and be a part of the legislative process. The 2025 Georgia Legislative Internship Program is now accepting applications for the January–April 2025 program period and applications are due by Tuesday, October 15th. Click here for more details.
As we enter the final weeks of the 2024 election season, I encourage you to take the time to research and then to exercise your right to vote.
Best,
Ember
