ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo. — A Colorado nonprofit is making voting and education around your vote more accessible for people with disabilities.
From 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Thursday at Brewability in Englewood, Arapahoe County Elections and Developmental Pathways are hosting a "Ballot Bingo" for around 100 people.
"This event is supposed to be fun. It's supposed to engage, and it's supposed to empower," Associate Director of Disability Policy with Developmental Pathways Kim Tenure said. "'Ballot Bingo' is set for individuals to play games of Bingo, win fun prizes, so we've got some DP swag for folks, but also to talk about facts."
One of those facts is — unlike other states — in Colorado, even if you have a guardian, you can vote.
"Here in Colorado, you can vote by mail. You can go down to a polling center and you can vote. If you have a qualifying disability, you can vote electronically," Tenure said.
Tenure said individuals with disabilities could be more impacted by government decisions than most, and they'll be educating attendees on how voting is a choice, and why she said it's the first step for advocacy.
"We will be telling individuals that there are ballot measures on their ballot in addition to candidates, to make sure we educate them that they're not just voting on people. They're voting on issues that really impact their community," Tenure said.
Organizers will also be informing guardians and parents on how to support the person they're caring for in voting.
"Making information understandable to one individual with a disability means you've made that information understandable to that one individual. So we want to make sure we have a spectrum of resources available, just like in our neurotypical, able bodied community, they can understand and engage with the information just like we would," Tenure said.
Colorado's Secretary of State Office said all voting centers in the state are required to have accessible voting machines.
You can find more information about accessible voting here.
