Washington DC Teams Up With Nextdoor To Increase Voter Participation

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Washington DC has inked a partnership with Nextdoor to improve voter participation. The goal of the partnership will be to help the DC Board of Elections get information to voters about polling places, requirements to vote and even changes to ballots in a timely manner.

Nextdoor is a private social network for individual neighborhoods. Users sign up with their address and see a feed of information specific to their local area, usually within a 3-5 block radius. Cities can use Nextdoor as a broadcast platform to get out information on public safety, local meetings, and other community news. Through the partnership, the DC Board of Elections will be using the broadcast capabilities of NextDoor ahead of election time.

“Nextdoor is used by a lot of folks in my neighborhood,” said elections board Chair Michael Bennett during a press conference announcing the partnership yesterday. “It’s a great tool to focus on local issues, right down to the city block. We’re hoping that this will increase voter participation across the city.”

DC’s partnership with Nextdoor is the first of its kind on the East Coast. Nearly 95% of the neighborhoods in DC are already using Nextdoor to share information. “As usual DC is leading and people probably don’t even know,” Bennett added.

The elections board is also working with the League of Women Voters to help spread voter information. The League announced its support for the partnership during the press conference. Over the summer, Washington DC will also be hosting informational services to help those with disabilities find accessible voting booths.