People experiencing homelessness may not know that they can use a shelter address to register to vote.
With the presidential election just weeks away, Pine Street Inn has a message for people experiencing homelessness — your voice counts.
The Boston nonprofit shelter has been getting the word out to guests and tenants about their voting rights. For many people without a permanent address, there is confusion about whether the law allows them to register to vote. As a result, far fewer people without a permanent home cast their ballots in local and general elections.
According to the National Health Care for the Homeless Council, about 10 percent of the homeless population turn out to vote in presidential elections compared to about 60 percent of the general population. However, advocates for the homeless community want to change that.
“If you are 18 or older and an American citizen, you have the right to vote. Pine Street Inn guests may use their shelter address when they register. Make your voice heard,” the shelter wrote in a social media post on National Voter Registration Day.