LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Early voting began on Monday, and four pastors chose the first day of early voting to spread a message to voters— The message that they wanted to share, was that this election, like any, is critical.
In a press conference held at St. Mark Baptist Church, the group introduced a new initiative as well as a call to the community to not pass up their right to vote.
This coming Saturday, Saint Mark Baptist Church, Second Baptist Church, Longley Baptist Church, and New Hope Baptist Church will meet at Parkview High School to encourage members of their church to go to the polls.
"Participating in this election is one of those matters where unity will make a difference," Dr. Phillip L. Pointer, Senior Pastor, at Saint Mark Baptist Church said.
Each pastor came together with the goal of not only getting people to the polls but also wanted to make sure voters are making an informed decision.
"It's not just showing up to vote, it's voting the entire ballot, familiarizing yourself with all the candidates and issues on the ballot that you will vote yes or not to," Dr. Pointer said.
Second Baptist Church pastor, Dr. Maurice Watson explained that he wants to encourage people to cast a ballot.
"We are certainly making a difference in getting people to the polls," Dr. Watson said.
With their new initiative called "Get Fired Up", he hopes to have more churches get involved in the effort to attract more members from their respective congregations.
"We are announcing it on Sunday morning [and] some churches are providing free rides to the polls," Dr. Watson said.
Dr. Pointer added that it's important for people to realize that voting can be very powerful and each vote can make a difference.
"It really does matter that you show up not just in the big years, the presidential election years, it matters that you show up in midterms and every single election," Dr. Pointer said.
He believes that those efforts have been proven to work.
"We've got testimonies of people, first-time voters but then also people who learn to vote the whole ballot through these efforts," Dr. Pointer said.
He has been continually optimistic that their work to go the extra mile to increase voter turnout will continue to have a drastic effect.
"We do believe we're making a difference," Dr. Pointer said.
As a reminder for early voters, locations are open Monday - Friday from 8:00 a.m. until 10:00 p.m. and on Saturday from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.
Absentee ballots need to be submitted by Friday, November 4.