Early voting lines hours long — #ChefsForThePolls is cooking!
Early voting has begun in many states across the country – and with it lines up to 12 hours long. On Monday, the first day of early voting in Georgia, thousands of people showed up to cast their ballots. WCK’s Relief Team mobilized in Marietta immediately. Our local lead, Ackeem, called on several restaurants in the area to start cooking. When we arrived near the polling location to serve dinner, Ackeem met people walking out who had lined up at 8am.
On Tuesday, we expanded our efforts to cover four voting sites around Atlanta. Thankfully lines didn’t last the entire day, but residents were still waiting outside for up to six hours to make their voices heard. Again partnering with local restaurants, our team got fresh meals to communities in Marietta, Smyrna, Lawrenceville, and Athens. Using the power of food, WCK is working to turn Election Day — and the early voting days leading up to it — into ones of community and hope.
In Texas, WCK activated last week to feed poll workers at the single ballot drop-off location in Harris County—home to 4.7 million people. Now, as early voting has begun in Houston, Austin, and Dallas, we had teams working across the state to ensure people waiting in long lines to vote were fed.
Setting up outside the American Airlines Center in Dallas, WCK’s Yia led the team in handing out fresh sandwiches and cool smoothies to anyone in need. WCK’s Dan and Mike led the crew in Houston as we provided chicken salad sandwiches from Zoe’s Kitchen to people near the Rice Stadium as well as at a drive-through voting site; Burns Original BBQ handed out chopped beef sandwiches near a polling location in Acres Homes, a neighborhood in northwest Houston.
Kristi, WCK’s local lead in Chicago, has been working with our #ChefsForAmerica restaurant partners to provide meals for the community near the Loop Super Site. Soul & Smoke and Manny’s Deli, two local spots, have prepared a variety of sandwiches to anyone in need of a delicious lunch. As polling staff are often working long hours, our team is glad to be able to provide them with a fresh meal, too!
Yesterday was the first day of early voting in Nashville, Tennessee. WCK activated by three polling sites as the community came out to make their voices heard. Through our response to the pandemic in Nashville, we have been working with Conexión Américas, an organization that supports and helps create opportunities for Latino families. WCK partnered with three food trucks in their Mesa Komal program to provide nourishing meals to residents by the polling locations.
There are still nearly three weeks until Election Day. Through #ChefsForThePolls, WCK will closely monitor lines around the country, jumping in to bring a comforting plate of food wherever we can. The best way to support this effort right now is by donating to help us provide more meals. To keep up to date on everywhere we are serving meals, follow WCK on Twitter.
