YORK, Pa. — Voting rights advocates celebrated a victory for Spanish-speaking voters in York on Monday after reaching an agreement with York County’s Board of Elections.
With polls opening on Tuesday, the victory couldn’t have come at a better time for the Spanish-speaking and Puerto Rican community.
In October 2022, CASA and the Latino Justice Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund filed a lawsuit against the York County Board of Elections for not providing several Spanish-language services to voters.
Both parties would eventually reach an agreement, with the county expected to provide Spanish-language services for election day 2023.
“What we hope from this election moving forward is that all Spanish-speaking voters and Latinx voters feel empowered to cast a ballot in their preferred language and actually feel part of our democratic system,” said Senior Council for the Latino Justice Center Fulvia Vargas.
The agreement ensures more than 150 precincts in York County will have bilingual sample ballots as well as posted signs in Spanish.
“In all precincts, there will be ICX machines, which will allow voters to use a machine if they need assistance in Spanish to be able to cast a ballot,” Vargas added.
Organizing Director of CASA Mirna Gonzalez describes the changes as monumental.
“By getting this agreement, this means so much because we’re going to have that change. We’re going to implement what we want, our voices are going to be heard and that is an amazing reward,” Gonzalez expressed.
Gonzalez additionally shared that the new agreement will help her community feel like their voices are heard.
“It is something that we all deserve. This is dignity and justice,” Gonzalez said.
The agreement is part of a five-year term and is expected to expire in December 2028. However, advocates are hopeful they will solidify the voting protections put in place before then.
Polls open on November 7th at 7 a.m. and will close at 8 p.m.