Dealing with Election Anxiety

Feeling stressed out by the election Tuesday? We hear a lot of folks are. A fellow from Pittsburgh being interviewed on the news Friday said, “I’ve been voting for 40 years but this year I feel like the weight of the world’s future is on my shoulders.” And that may be true for Pennsylvania’s voters. But here in Washington we are facing similarly consequential choices with the four initiatives on the ballot. If you feel the need to de-stress a little, the Wallingford United Methodist Church is offering you a quiet place in their sanctuary on Monday evening to drop in from 7 pm to 8:15 pm for a bit of quiet, prayer, meditation, just sitting or whatever you do to calm your spirit (but maybe not a primal scream). There is no program, no music, no hot cider; just cozy and quiet. Wallingford UMC is located at N 42nd St and Bagley Ave N.

You can find electronic versions of the State Voter’s Pamphlet and the King County Voter’s Pamphlet on the web if you need more information about State offices and judges or the initiatives (in the State pamphlet) or local elections (in the King County pamphlet).

So get your voting done and into a post office collection box for pickup on Monday (just to be safe) or a county ballot drop box before 8 pm Tuesday. The closest ballot drop boxes are at Waterway 19 Park, just east of Gas Works Park, 2119 Northlake Way, Schmitz Hall at the University of Washington, 1140 NE Campus Pkwy or the Green Lake Community Center on the north side of Green Lake, 7201 E Green Lake Dr N.

If you need to register to vote (any time up till the polls close – bring your driver’s license or photo ID) or need any sort of in-person assistance, including special polling for persons with various disabilities, you can go to the Lumen Field (home of the Seahawks, Sounders and Reign) Event Center at 800 Occidental Ave till 6 pm on Monday or 8 pm on Tuesday. Persons who are blind or low vision can also access a ballot at kingcounty.gov/obmp.

You can track the progress on counting your own ballot on the web. If your signature is especially scrawlly or novel you might want to check to make sure you don’t need to confirm it before it can be counted.