The long-awaited date of November 3rd is finally here. This election day in particular might bring you feelings of hope, anxiety, excitement, fear, or pride. Maybe you’ve already sent in your ballot or maybe you’re going to cast your vote in person today. Either way, hopefully you’re feeling informed about the positions of the candidates and feeling confident about what’s on your ballot. Maybe you’ve decided on some other ways to get civically engaged outside of voting, or spent some time thinking about the history of voting and some fun facts about elections.

There’s lots to do and think about, and with the mix of emotions that election day can elicit, I’ve found that one of the most universal sources of positivity on this day tends to be the “I voted” sticker. When I was a poll worker in previous elections, my favorite assignment was always collecting the completed ballots and handing out the stickers. Some folks gave a humble smile and “thank you”, while others literally jumped for joy and asked me to take a picture of them wearing their sticker to post on social media. Some combination of civic duty, pride for having participated, and perhaps hope for a particular outcome makes people excited to wear their “I voted” sticker.

Many companies add to the fun of wearing the sticker by offering different deals, discounts, and even freebies to patrons who display their sticker on election day. Although technically it is against the law to provide anything of monetary value in exchange for voting in a government election, companies have found ways to legally reward those of us who vote! Some ask customers to mention having voted instead of showing a sticker as proof or offer their promotions to any customer who comes in on election day regardless of whether or not they actually voted.

After you pick up your “I voted” sticker, wear it with pride and stop by some stores for some sweet freebies!

• Krispy Kreme – Free glazed donut for anyone who comes by on election day
• Bobo’s – Free snack bar coupon with your “I voted sticker”
• Boston Market – Free slider for any customer after 9 pm on election day
• Enlightened Ice Cream – Free ice cream if you tag them on Instagram and mention the word “vote”
• GrubHub – Tons of election day deals and discounts from participating restaurants

There are plenty of other local establishments with discounts, deals, and freebies so check out what’s available in your local area and then show off that “I voted” sticker around town!

*Leadership Lesson*

See what kind of goodies you can get with your “I Voted” sticker, and then use one of them as an example for the November 2020 Activity of the Month, Telephone Pictionary. Start with a phrase like “I got a free donut” and see how it transforms from round to round.

• • Ask everyone to sit in a circle.
  • Give everyone a paper booklet and pen.
  • Each person is to write a short familiar phrase or sentence on the cover of the booklet, for example: “I believe I can fly” or “Rock paper scissors”. Give everyone one minute to write a phrase down.
  • Then, tell everyone to pass their booklet to the person to their right.
  • Each person will read the phrase on the cover of their new booklet, flip the cover page, and draw a picture of their interpretation on the right side of the booklet. Give everyone one minute to draw a picture of the phrase.
  • Then tell everyone to pass their booklet to the person to their right, with their picture open and visible.
  • The next person will look only at the picture that the person to their left has drawn. Tell them to flip the page, and draw a short phrase that interprets the picture (on the right side of the booklet). Give everyone one minute to write a phrase down.
  • Continue this pattern of drawing pictures and writing phrases until each person receives their own booklet back.
  • Then, have each person go through their own booklets and showcase each page in front of the group. 
  • Online: To lead this activity online, ask for a volunteer to start by writing a phrase. This volunteer will call on the next participant to draw. Everyone else should close their eyes so that the phrase can be secretly passed to the next person. Play will continue this way until the last person is called on to write or draw.

*Meet the Author*

Morgan is the Program Coordinator for Leadership Inspirations. He has a B.A. in Integrated Educational Studies and an M.A. in Leadership Development from Chapman University.

Favorite quote: “Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, it’s not the end” – John Lennon

Fun facts: 1) I once trained my pet goldfish to play basketball 2) When I was little I wanted to be a Disneyland parking attendant 3) I’m a big Justin Timberlake fan