(TheConservativeTimes.org) – California is making it easier for people to vote in the state, but those who are disabled have found that it’s still difficult for them.
Lisamaria Martinez, a blind California resident spoke out about the difficulty she’s faced voting as a blind resident. Martinez said that she remembers what she wore the last time she voted because it was part of her empowering “confidence attire.”
She stated that this was essential because she constantly had to explain to those poll workers how to use her specific voting machine for her disability.
In an interview, Martinez explained, “I shouldn’t have to tell people how to do their jobs, right?” She continued, “That emotional labor shouldn’t always be on the person with the disability.”
She stated that the voting machine is supposed to read the polls out loud so she can vote, but because the machines were broken last time, she and others who were disabled had to say their votes out loud to others. Following this, she and other disabled voters sued the city.
California has faced a lot of pressure from others to revise their voting situation, but there’s still pushback from disabled voters who say that they are still struggling.
The bigger issue that they are fighting for now is the paper-based ballot return for disabled people even if they are using an electronic version to send in. Disability advocates are going to court to address the issue, with the plaintiffs arguing, “The current paper-based ballot return requirements impose significant, unlawful barriers for voters with print disabilities.”
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