This year's presidential election is video lucajtaking place in the middle of a pandemic, making it harder for states to find enough poll workers, register eligible voters, get people set up on mail-in ballots, or even make sure people make it to the polls.
So the tech companies behind some of the most popular apps are getting involved to make sure people can exercise their right to vote. For many of these initiatives, you don't even have to leave the app you've already downloaded. You can't actually vote in the apps, however.
Lyft
Ride-hailing app Lyft is giving free rides to voters in underserved communities through several organizations: the Black Women’s Roundtable; the National Federation of the Blind; and the Student Veterans of America. These LyftUp partners will give out free codes to community members to ride to any polling place or ballot drop-off location.
Use the code on any Lyft ride. Credit: lyft All Lyft users can get a 50 percent discount (up to $10) on an Election Day ride to the polls or a dropbox with the discount code "2020VOTE." Enter the code in the promos tab on the app.
This year, the discount also works for Lyft bike- and scooter-share rentals. Lyft is also providing rides to new polling locations in Atlanta, Charlotte, Detroit, Milwaukee, and Orlando.
UPDATE: Oct. 6, 2020, 7:10 a.m. UTC Starbucks employees can get a free Lyft ride to vote or volunteer starting Oct. 6 and continuing through Election Day. The free ride can be up to $75 to get to a polling place or a drop-off location. Starbucks is also giving workers a paid time off if they are working at the polls or voting.
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UPDATE: Oct. 23, 2020, 7:55 a.m. PT Nike partnered with Lyft to offer 50 percent off rides to vote starting Friday (Oct. 23) through Election Day in Atlanta, Memphis, Chicago, Baltimore, Houston, Milwaukee, Miami, and Portland. Use the code NIKE2020 for up to $10 off.
Vote. Just do it. Credit: lyft / nike UPDATE: Oct. 30, 2020, 7:30 a.m. PT GOTV nonprofitPlus1Vote is giving free Lyft rides (up to $20 roundtrip) to early vote or vote on Election Day. They are offering the promo in these communities:
Florida (Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, and Broward counties)
Georgia (Fulton and DeKalb counties)
South Carolina (Richland and Charleston counties)
Mississippi (Coahoma and Hinds counties, but only on Nov. 3)
Snapchat
Snap has a bunch of different ways to get out the vote. One is a voter registration portal directly in the Snapchat app. It'll also track how many people have registered just on Snapchat.
Others include different resources and guides also within Snapchat to show how you can vote (such as vote-by-mail or in-person at the polls depending on your state) and how to make a voting plan. On every profile page there's a voter checklist to make sure you're ready to rock the vote.
Snapchat is partnering with BallotReady to include a whole #BeforeYouVote guide.
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UPDATE: Oct. 1, 2020, 1:14 p.m. ET Snapchat already registered 1 million users this year, which is double the 450,000 voters registered through Snapchat in 2018. More than half (56 percent) are first-time voters, and 64.5 percent are 18 to 24 years old.
After the 2018 election, TurboVote estimates 57 percent of those who registered through the app actually voted.
Uber
The Uber and Uber Eats apps are normally where you head to order rides and request food deliveries, but starting Tuesday they're also where you can register to vote or request a ballot.
As part of a partnership with TurboVote, the Uber apps' main screen will become a registration portal.
Register in the Uber app. Credit: Uber Closer to November, Uber will add polling place search in the app and give a promo code for discounted rides to the polls.
In an emailed statement, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said, "I know that Uber is uniquely positioned to help move people to the polls, so over the course of the next two months, we’ll work to ensure every American citizen, regardless of the barriers they face, can cast their vote."
Uber Eats
Just like the Uber app, the food delivery version lets you register to vote through the app before you order food or use the app.
Uber Eats is bringing free food to the polls. Credit: uber eats / Seize Digital + Impactual Then starting on Oct. 24 (that's Early Voting Day) through Nov. 3, an Uber Eats food truck will go to polling places IRL in 25 cities: Phoenix, AZ; Los Angeles, CA; Washington, D.C.; Miami, FL; Tampa, FL; Orlando, FL; Gainesville, FL; Atlanta, GA; Louisville, KY; Detroit, MI; Ann Arbor, MI; Minneapolis, MN; Charlotte, NC; Raleigh, NC; Greensboro, NC; Las Vegas, NV; Reno, NV; New York, NY; Philadelphia, PA; Pittsburgh, PA; Charleston, SC; Nashville, TN; Houston, TX; Austin, TX; and Milwaukee, WI.
The Uber Eats truck from Pizza to the Polls will hand out free food to people waiting in line to vote, along with poll workers and others working and volunteering during the election. Food from Milk Bar will be available in every city, along with Shake Shake in NYC, Philly, and D.C., &pizza in Philly and D.C., Pizza Loves Emily in NYC, Voodoo Doughnut in Austin and Houston, and other local spots in other cities.
If you're over 18 and in the U.S., look at your Facebook news feed and you should see a notice at the top about working the polls in November. In the app you'll get directed to an application to be a poll worker in your state as election departments face worker shortages this year.
As of September 19, the news feed started to notify users to register to vote.
Facebook launched a “More Questions, More Answers” campaign ahead of National Voter Registration Day (Sept. 22) to direct users to Facebook's Voting Information Center. Next week more information about early voting will be updated on the Center's pages.
A space devoted to voting. Credit: facebook On Voter Registration Day Facebook Watch will stream a one-hour special, Vote-A-Thon 2020, with celebrities and others participating in the telethon to get users registered to vote.
On top of all this, Facebook is starting the #PledgeToVoteChallenge on Facebook and Instagram that includes sticker packs to use in Facebook's Messenger app and throughout Facebook and Instagram.
At the top of Instagram (and Facebook and Messenger) there's a notice about how to register to vote for U.S. users. Clicking through sends you to your state's official registration site. The registration info will stay at the top of the apps through Sept. 25.
Register to vote. Credit: facebook On National Voter Registration Day, Instagram is launching election and voting stickers in the sticker tray in their stories and anyone who uses them will be part of a "Register To Vote" story.
Voting registration information is also available through Facebook's WhatApp even if it's not a social network. You can chat directly with Vote.org (add +1 (628) 500-8683) to ask about registering or requesting a mail ballot. There's also a fact-checking bot you can message about voting issues (in both English and Spanish) through the International Fact-Checking Network.
Chat out the facts. Credit: whatsapp / screengrab / mashable Spotify
Listen up, the streaming music app Spotify added notifications on the top of the app to provide info for voters to register and plan to vote in the election. Spotify has a Voter’s Booth hub, which includes voting playlists and curated podcasts about the election.
Play Your Part Credit: Spotify Spotify is connecting first-time voters (you gave your birthday to Spotify when you first signed up) with other first-timers to support each other with messages about registering and planning to vote.
TikTok
Countdown to the election straight in the TikTok video app. A new 2020 election guide is up on the Discover page. You can get information about voting for each state, like how to register and where your polling place is located for in-person voting.
A guide for the election. Credit: tiktok The National Association of Secretaries of State, BallotReady, and SignVote are some of the groups TikTok partnered with to provide election information on the app and that will connect you to outside resources all the way to local races.
The guide will also be linked to the bottom of any videos related to the election. But don't worry, clicking on the guide won't affect what future TikTok videos you're recommended. So you can get informed without throwing off your TikTok algorithm with too much political content.
Tinder
Swipe right to register. The dating app is connecting singles to election resources. But instead of an election hub or separate portal, all the information you need for the election is available on a Tinder dating profile.
Matching you to the polls. Credit: Tinder Through the app, Tinder users can check their registration status, request a mail-in ballot, or find the right website to register to vote in their state. Working with the BallotReady organization, you just have to click on the voting profile to sign up to receive a ballot by mail.
Bird
The e-scooter rental company Bird will now offer free rides on Election Day. Previously it had announced 50 percent off rides on Nov. 3. But now you can enter the code VOTE2020in the Bird app and receive a free ride up to 30 minutes. This is only available on Election Day and in the U.S.
Roll to the polls, literally. Credit: NABSA Other mobility apps and bike- and scooter-share programs like Gotcha and Spin are also offering discounts to get to the polls. More info is available at North American Bikeshare Association’s (NABSA) website, Roll to the Polls.
Scoot
The Bird-owned scooter company is also offering free rides on Election Day as part of the Roll to the Polls initiative.
More ways to get to the polls. Credit: scoot In the Scoot app you can enter the promo code VOTE2020on Election Day to receive up to 30 minutes of free Scoot riding. The code only works for Scoot rides in San Francisco.
Starbucks
Order some coffee and figure out your voting plans. Credit: starbucks The Starbucks reward app that customers use to pay and collect points for store purchases includes voting resources ahead of the election. Within the app users can register to vote or confirm their polling place.
Hulu
Before watching TV (or a debate, which you can watch live for free on Hulu), check out Hulu's election hub. The streaming service partnered with Rock the Vote to help people register before the election.
Election content for viewing and voting. Credit: hulu DoorDash
Making a voting plan in the DoorDash app. Credit: doordash After ordering on the DoorDash app you'll notice a link at the bottom of your order receipt (it's also sent to your inbox as an email) to a voter resource hub. The hub website, which is a partnership with organizations like When We All Vote and More Than A Vote, has information on how to register to vote and how to making a voting plan.
On Election Day (Nov. 3), the app is offering free delivery for all orders $15 and up. You can enter the promo code "VOTE" in the app. For DashPass subscribers who already have free delivery the code "DPVOTE" gives 10 percent off orders on Election Day.
ClimaCell
Yes, even a weather app is getting out the vote.
Vote no matter the weather. Credit: climacell A new "voting" section in ClimaCell's free mobile app (for Android and iOS) comes up under the "activities" tab and shows the best time to wait it out at your polling location. Now you'll know at the exact location you'll be voting whether it's hot, cold, rainy, humid, windy, or if there's poor air quality.
Note: This story will be updated as companies announce voting initiatives for the election on Nov. 3.
Topics Snapchat Uber Politics lyft