Are you ready to vote in this year’s general election? Voting is both a right and responsibility, and democracy works best when everyone participates.
Access the Library’s nonpartisan Voting & Elections Guide to find out the following:
- How to register to vote or update your vote registration, as well as useful information for first-time voters
- How you can vote, including when to expect to receive your ballot via mail, when and how to return your completed ballot, and when and where you can vote in-person closer to or on Election Day
- What will be on the ballot, including candidates running for local and state offices as well as U.S. Congress, along with state and local ballot measures
This nonpartisan resource guide, compiled and maintained by PPLD librarians, also includes other useful information like news sources, fact checking, and fake news, along with how to find your current legislators and see how political campaigns are financed.
Here are other ways that PPLD can help you prepare and participate in the upcoming election:
- PPLD partners with the League of Women Voters of the Pikes Peak Region throughout the year to ensure residents can easily register to vote or update their voter registration. They’ll have volunteers at Penrose, Ruth Holley, and Sand Creek libraries on Tue., Oct. 11 from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. to assist with any voter registration needs.
- There are secure, 24-hour ballot drop boxes outside of East Library and Library 21c. They are accessible by vehicle, bicycle, or walking up. (Fun facts: These are two of 39 total ballot drop boxes across El Paso County. Plus, East Library has the LARGEST ballot box in the state! It had to be specially built and installed due to high use by local voters.)
- Several Library locations will serve as Voting Service and Polling Centers, in partnership with the Elections Department of El Paso County’s Clerk and Recorder’s Office. This includes Library 21c, as well as East, Fountain, Ruth Holley, and Sand Creek libraries. Voters can visit any Voter Service and Polling Center location in El Paso County to do the following in-person: vote, update their voter registration, request a replacement ballot, mark their ballot using an ADA-accessible ballot marking devices, or drop off their ballot. (Fun fact: This is the first year for Ruth Holley Library to serve as a voting site!)
- Political literature may be available inside your local library as the general election date gets closer. If space allows at Library locations, there’s usually a table dedicated to this purpose with clearly marked signage, and anyone can display political information in this spot only. (PPLD does not endorse any political campaigns.)
- Check out our past and upcoming Community Conversations, which cover various hot topics that impact our local communities and the Pikes Peak region. They’re typically held in-person and virtually, with some available for viewing later (like the one on voting below).
For anyone interested in petitioning, hosting a voter registration drive, or conducting other civic engagement activities on any PPLD property, please review our Solicitation Policy.
Who can vote in Colorado?
- U.S. Citizens
- Individuals who are 17 years old if they will be 18 years old by election day (but 16 and 17-year-olds can preregister!).
- People who have lived in Colorado for 22 days or more before election day.
- People who are not in detention in a correctional facility, jail, or other facility for a felony conviction.
- People who have finished their sentence for a felony conviction, including any parole, are eligible to vote.
- If you are on probation or were convicted for a misdemeanor, you are eligible to vote.
Check out our Community Conversation on voting and learn more about future Community Conversations here.