On Wednesday, Erie County Legislator Taisha St. Jean Tard sat under the shade of an umbrella outside of a Spot Coffee n Elmwood Avenue. Even with the sun beating down, St. Jean Tard was all smiles.
“I've been in office for almost two years now, and something that I realized was that we didn't have enough people registered to vote,” said St. Jean Tard.
That was how she found herself outside of the coffee shop, baking in the summer heat. The second district legislator was hosting a voter registration drive. She was joined by Erie County Board of Elections workers as she tried to help eligible residents register to vote.
“We got more people registered, which was the biggest purpose,” St. Jean Tard said. “We were able to really push and encourage and educate.”
St. Jean Tard hosted two events as part of the registration outreach effort. The first one was at the Neighborhood Health Center Riverway Site, helping people register between doctor's appointments. Parents brought their children to the health center, St. Jean Tard said, so while she was helping the adults register, she was also able to teach the next generation about civic engagement.
“Research shows that most people don’t vote simply because no one has ever asked them to register to vote,” said Neighborhood Health Center President and CEO Joanne Haefner. “We can change that by offering registration where people already are.”
The second event was at a Spot Coffee, where St. Jean Tard sat outside and asked passersby if they were registered to vote. If they weren’t, she offered to help them fill out the registration paperwork.
“Voting should be accessible to everyone, and that starts with making voter registration as easy as possible,” St. Jean Tard said. “Every conversation, every registration form completed and every new voter empowered strengthens our community and our democracy.”
However, the events were not just about early voting. St. Jean Tard was also trying to recruit eligible voters to be poll inspectors. Data from the Election Assistance Commission found nearly 50% of voting jurisdictions reported difficulties in recruiting poll workers in 2024.
Poll workers are paid $187 during early voting and $300 on Election Day, according to the Erie County Board of Elections.
Last year, St. Jean Tard hosted a similar series of voter registration pop-up events and she hopes to continue the tradition next summer as well.