Press Release

New York City General Elections — Tuesday, November 3, 2009

In past elections, Asian Americans have faced a series of barriers in exercising their right to vote. For example, poll workers were hostile and made racist remarks, poll sites had too few interpreters to assist Asian American voters, and translated voting materials were missing. In response, the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund has monitored the elections for compliance with the federal Voting Rights Act, which mandates bilingual ballots and forbids anti-Asian voter discrimination.

AALDEF and the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) are collaborating to provide attorneys with CLE credits for a training on voting rights law. Attorneys will also be trained on inspecting poll sites, observing poll worker conduct, and surveying voters on Election Day.

Volunteers are needed to administer a multilingual voter survey in 3-hour shifts and document voting problems on Election Day. Polls are open from 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM. There will be a one-hour training session for all volunteers (90 minutes for trainings taking place at law firms). All volunteers must be non-partisan during the time they help.

To sign up as a volunteer and for a training schedule, go to www.aaldef.net. Thank you!

For more information:
Glenn D. Magpantay
Staff Attorney
212.966.5932 ext. 206
gmagpantay@aaldef.org