About Us
Vot-ER is a Root Causes program and part of the national Vot-ER initiative, which works to increase access to civic engagement and voter registration through healthcare settings. You may have seen our QR-code badges around Duke Hospital and clinics—our goal is to make voter registration simple, nonpartisan, and accessible to patients, staff, and students.
We assemble and distribute voting materials (badges, posters, and digital tools), and we collaborate with Duke partners, Durham community organizations, and the national Vot-ER team to make civic engagement a seamless part of healthcare.
What We do
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Voter registration drives across Duke Hospital and Duke’s undergraduate and graduate campuses
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Badge assembly and distribution to make QR-code voter registration tools available in clinical settings
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Civic engagement and educational programming
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Partnerships with Duke Hospital, local organizations, and the national Vot-ER staff
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Resource development, including posters, handouts, and digital tools for nonpartisan voter registration
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Annual participation in the Healthy Democracy Campaign - an annual voter registration drive effort between medical schools and healthcare programs around the US
Why Get Involved?
June 2022
Voting as a health determinant
In June 2022, the American Medical Association formally recognized voting as a social determinant of health.
Patients who are eligible to vote but remain unregistered are often the same individuals marginalized by healthcare systems.
Voter registration helps address upstream contributors to social determinants of health such as housing, food access, transportation, and insurance coverage.
Role of Volunteers
Collaborate with partners to promote voting registration!
Volunteers have opportunities to collaborate with community members both within and outside DukeMed, including NC organizations like You Can Vote and the broader Root Causes network.
We want you to be registered and empowered to help friends, family, and patients register—especially in important election years!
