Nonprofits to Offer Free Childcare on Election Day

With early voting turnout across the lone star state trailing numbers seen at this point in 2020, all eyes are on election day, including what barriers could keep some North Texans from making their voices heard.

“They’re things like just not having time or not having someone to watch their little one and being afraid to have to bring them with them to run an errand that, at best is tedious to a small child. And at worst is, as a friend of mine who had experience actually in Texas, told me her child shut down the voting systems one year,” said Politisit Executive Director Emily Teixeira.

Politist, a non-partisan non-profit focused on getting parents and caretakers involved in civics, began providing free drop-in care for parents headed to the polls in 2020.

This year, between the Park South YMCA in Dallas, the Boys and Girls Club of Tarrant County Main Branch in Arlington, the Boys and Girls Club East Side Branch in Fort Worth and the Ryan Family YMCA in Fort Worth, Teixeira said they can care for 150 kids at any one time.

“We think that parents’ voices and families’ voices are super important in our communities and that the best way to do so is to help them be more involved,” she said.

“The biggest things are work and family obligations,” said SMU political science professor Matthew Wilson.

Wilson said people deterred by barriers like these, along with lack of transportation, likely make up just a few percentage points of the electorate.

Still, in a close race, he said that could be enough to make a difference.

“It’s not so much, will the Democrats or Republicans gain or lose when people are deterred from going to the polls. But rather, what is the mix of voices that both parties will take into account in deciding how to position themselves and their candidates?” he said.

And for Teixeira, whether the policies enacted by those elected support everyone, including families, they serve.

“When everybody participates, and when everybody casts a ballot, we have a better, stronger democracy,” said Teixeira.

Participating Facilities:

  • Park South YMCA, 2500 Romine Ave., Dallas: 7 a.m. – 7 p.m.
  • Boys and Girls Club of Tarrant County Main Branch, 608 North Elm St., Arlington: 3:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
  • Boys and Girls Club of Tarrant County, East Side Branch at 4651 Ramey Avenue, Ft. Worth: 3:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
  • Ryan Family YMCA, 8250 McCart Ave., Ft. Worth: 8 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Tarrant County elections officials are explaining what to expect at North Texas polling places for early voting.

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