The Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community’s Office of Legislative Affairs and the Get Out the Vote Ad-Hoc Committee brought the love for voting to the Round House Café on February 14 for the Make a Date to Vote on Valentine’s Day outreach event.

Throughout the morning and afternoon, staff and committee members handed out swag and were available to help people register to vote.

Aristina Sanchez, Office of General Counsel Tribal Court Advocate and member of the Get Out the Vote Ad-Hoc Committee, said that volunteers also helped people check on their registration status to make sure that their addresses are up to date and that they know about the deadlines for the upcoming elections.

“An important date for voters to circle on their calendar is the Presidential Preference Election (PPE) Day on March 19,” said Sanchez.

Only voters who were registered as a Republican or Democrat by February 20 may cast a vote in the Presidential Preference Election. It replaces a traditional presidential primary in the State of Arizona. Voters registered as Independent are ineligible to vote in the PPE.

After the PPE, delegates vote for their party’s official presidential candidate nominee at their national convention. Those candidates are then placed on the ballot for November’s General Election.

On February 15, the Community erected a billboard on McDowell Road to remind voters about the PPE.

One of the objectives of the February 14 event was to familiarize potential voters with their options for candidates for the two major parties. A large print-out was available to view, which had the names and faces of the candidates.

“We also try to direct people toward online resources that not only have the candidates but also their positions on items of legislation with certain social issues that could affect the Community,” said Sanchez.

With stickers and T-shirts using the hashtag #SKOVOTEDEN and taglines such as “My Ancestors Couldn’t Vote But I Can” and “I Am Onk Akimel O’odham and Xalychidom Piipaash and I Vote,” the Committee hopes to continue to engage with and grab the attention of potential Community-member voters.

“A lot of people think that their vote doesn’t affect the Community, or it doesn’t count, but that’s a huge misconception,” said Sanchez.

The U.S. Presidential Election will take place this year on November 5.