Voting #atozchallenge

To the best of my knowledge, my autistic brother in law, "Bil", never voted until a handful of years ago.  He was registered to vote where he lived then by his Medicaid Service Coordinator.

As far as I know, Bil had never voted before.  In years past, people with disabilities tended to be forgotten in many ways, including in having a right to exercise one of the basic rights of United States citizenship.  Outrageous, isn't it?

My husband, Bil's brother, is also his guardian. When Bil moved here in 2015, my husband made sure "Bil" was registered to vote.

 Last spring, "Bil" registered as a member of the party of his choice.

Then, in the New York presidential primary, my spouse took Bil to the voting place, and Bil voted.  Bil needed some assistance in the physical aspect of voting, but he made his own decisions and voted for the candidate he believed would be a good candidate for the party he follows.

Bil has some intellectual disabilities.  However, he watches TV a lot, and made up his mind who he would vote for.  If that process was influenced by the news channel he watches a lot - well, aren't we all influenced by someone?

Is he less able to vote than a neurotypical voter?

Should his vote count for less?

I say "no" to both.  Bil did vote - which is more than a lot of us do.  And he gave an interesting reason for his vote.  Because he felt the other candidate, the one he didn't vote for, was mean.

Some people would say, he does not have intellectual capability to fully understand the issues. Perhaps he did not totally understand the issues - but how many of us vote for logical reasons?  Think about it.

It's shameful that people with disabilities still find it difficult to vote in the United States.

Thankfully, Bil was able to register without difficulties in our home state of New York.  Shameful that so many with disabilities, who want to vote, find themselves disenfranchised.

It's a national disgrace.

I am proud, meantime of my brother in law, for doing his civic duty.

Did you vote in the last election whereever you live?