On Tuesday, November 8th, 2022, SAAPRI’s team voted and poll watched at various Chicago locations. In collaboration with our partner organization Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Chicago (AAAJ-C), we made sure South Asian American voters had the language support and resources we have long advocated for. Minority language voters have their own additional challenges, and the recent redrawing of ward maps and precinct consolidation mid-election cycle in Chicago didn’t make things any easier. Despite assurances by the local election authority, the significant reduction of precincts in areas with high minority voter population led to a lot of confusion, requests for provisional ballots, and redirecting of voters to their new precinct polling place or the nearest Early Voting site.
Sixteen precincts were cut in the 49th Ward, which includes Rogers Park. That’s a roughly 48.5% decrease from the 33 in the June primary election and the sixth-largest percent decrease of the city’s 50 wards.
Tessa Weinberg, WBEZ Chicago
While it was encouraging to see our communities take to the polls against all odds, we remain committed to protecting and expanding the voting rights of our very diverse electorate.
- Read the WBEZ article regarding the confusion on Election Day here