Ahead of a crucial matchup between Real Salt Lake and Los Angeles FC, Tate Schmitt arrived at the stadium in white sneakers paired with well-worn jeans and a shirt with a simple but important message -- Vote. It's a sentiment that has been echoed throughout the athletic landscape with professional and collegiate organizations alike launching initiatives to inform and encourage participation at the polls this November.
There are very few things that capture the world's attention like an election and in just a few short hours the United States will enter into another four-year cycle with the completion of the general election. And while the focus of Real Salt Lake is generally turned towards what takes place on the pitch this time of year has given way to conversations about the importance of the constitutional right of being able to vote.
Over the past few months the club has run several video campaigns that discuss the mechanism of how and where to vote. Players have spoken on the weight and gravity of the action and graphics have been plastered across social media reiterating the benefits of having your voice heard -- all in an effort to inform and encourage fans to take part in such an important action.
Regardless of political belief or affiliation the importance of having one’s voice heard doesn’t change, a sentiment echoed by Real Monarchs goalkeeper Jimmy Slayton.
“Everyone has a voice,” Slayton said. “And while there is an inclination to view it as small it is still a privilege to have a say regardless of how small or large it may be. We live in a country that was founded on valuing everyone's voice and it’s our job to make sure that it is heard.”
Slayton, like many other players across the club, will be voting in his first presidential election, but unlike those same players Slayton will take part in the customary form of voting in person in his home state of Connecticut.
Many across the state of Utah will drive to their local polling stations today and stand in line to cast their ballots, locations of which can be found on vote.utah.gov. Polling locations in Utah will open at 7:00 a.m. MT and remain open until 8:00 p.m. MT and can be accessed with valid identification. (Voters in line by 8:00 p.m. MT will be permitted to vote)
Schmitt, who is a registered voter in Arizona, submitted his mail-in ballot as he was unable to make the trip down to his home state while competing with Real Salt Lake. This is his second presidential election and he shared that as he has gotten older the importance of which has changed.
“I’ve come to realize that everyone’s vote and voice matters in an effort to keep or make change,” Schmitt said. “The action may look different for each person and whether it is in person or by mail it’s a symbol of our voice being heard.”
Utah Royals FC defender Taylor Leach has become accustomed to absentee voting after spending four years playing abroad in Sweden. Her time in Europe amplified to her the privilege of voting, as it took months of planning and execution in order to make sure that she had ample time to fill out her ballot and send it back across the Atlantic Ocean to her home in Ohio.
“Voting is the greatest mechanism we have to contribute to our political landscape and ensure that our voice is heard,” Leach said. “My time in Sweden showed me just how crucial it is to take part in democracy.”
Because of Coronavirus many, like Leach, have voted via absentee ballot, and while in the state of Utah your ballot must have been postmarked by November 2, voters can still drop off their ballots at any drop box location November 3 before 8:00 p.m. MT.
The truth is that these days there is very little that we can agree on, whether it is our favorite soccer team or who should be President of the United States, but Election Day serves to remind us that regardless of where you stand when you choose to vote your voice is heard. So, take some time, check your ballot status, mask up and head to the polls and remember it’s a privilege to take part in this time-honored tradition that only comes once every four years.
