Event Details
October 24 is the last day to register to vote in New York — and the first day of early voting — exactly the kind of moment VOTEFEST was created for.
VOTEFEST is a creative voter-engagement movement designed to bring people in and make voting visible, social and contagious. HeadCount will be registering voters, with the League of Women Voters and other community groups providing assistance with voting plans, helping seniors and people with disabilities vote, election protection planning, poll monitoring and other voter information. Plus live music, art, camaraderie and empanadas.
From 2–3:30 PM, VOTEFEST takes over MacDonald Park. At 3:30 PM, we pick up the signs, head out of the park and turn VOTEFEST into a March to the Polls on the opening day of early voting.
VOTEFEST brings together organizations working on different pieces of civic participation — from voter registration and accessibility to election protection, voter education and community organizing. Participating and partner groups include HeadCount, the League of Women Voters, Common Cause, NYCLU, Hands Off NYC, Let’s Talk Democracy, Central Queens Mutual Aid, Central Queens Against Hate, Forest Hills Asian Association, Forest Hills Green Team, The Beacon, First Presbyterian Church of Forest Hills and other neighborhood and citywide organizations.
The larger idea behind VOTEFEST is bigger than a single event. Inspired in part by Stacey Abrams’s long-term approach to voter engagement, we’re developing a creative model that communities can adapt and make their own — bringing artists, musicians, organizers and civic groups together to make participation something people see happening all around them.