Gusty winds, dust clouds and poor air quality didn’t keep more than 70 people from marching to an Oro Valley ballot box Oct. 16 to encourage early voting.

Many carried signs, American flags or their yellow envelopes as they marched from the Oro Valley Community Center to the Oro Valley Public Library as part of an event organized by Indivisible Tucson Action Alliance. The goal was to remind voters they can cast their ballots early and demonstrate that the right to vote should be exercised and protected, according to a news release from the group.

“Voting is usually something we do individually and quietly. We want to make it visible,” said group co-leader Amy Gosla. “When neighbors walk together to cast their ballots, we’re reminding one another that voting is a right, a responsibility and something worth standing up for.”

Gosla said the visibility is part of the point.

“We want people driving by to see us and think, ‘My ballot is sitting at home. I should vote,’” Gosla said. “Voting early is one concrete thing each of us can do right now.”

Oro Valley resident and organizer Katie Reiter also attended the event, reflecting on the current state of the country.

“Democracy is messy. Democracy is fragile, and voting is one really important thing you can do to protect our democracy,” Reiter said. “There has been a lot of talk by the (Trump) administration of limiting or impacting voting, so we think people of all persuasions should vote early.”

She pointed to what she described as a mix of attempts to change or obscure voting systems, from rushing new ballot verification systems to casting doubt on previous elections.

The Justice Department announced Monday that it had charged 28 people in California it says are noncitizens, accusing them of making false statements on naturalization applications and submitting fraudulent voter registrations. Noncitizen voting is rare and has not been shown to change the outcome of races.

Gosla said she trusts the local process.

“I love our Pima County Recorder,” Gosla said. “I think she’s excellent. I am very confident in Pima County with our ballot process.”

Gosla said she has personally witnessed every step in the Pima County voting process, aside from the tabulation room.

“I think voting early just makes me have peace of mind,” Gosla said, describing early voting as akin to checking something off a daily to-do list.

For some voters, the habit started long before they came to Arizona.

“To me, it’s just so convenient,” said Karen Rust, a retiree and Oro Valley resident. “Coming from Colorado, and then to Arizona, it’s always mail-in voting, and there was no excuse not to turn that in. It’s incredibly important. Nothing can change until we vote to change it.”

Bob Apczynskyi, another retired resident, came out not just to vote for his preferred candidates but also to make sure people know they can vote early and avoid the lines on Election Day.

“Get involved in some way in this whole process,” Apczynskyi said. “Sitting back and just showing up on voting day isn’t enough.”

The last day to request a mail-in ballot is Oct. 23, and the Pima County Recorder recommends mailing ballots no later than Oct. 27.

Beyond voting, Apczynskyi said he felt a sense of community during the march.

“I love things like this because it makes me feel a little less alone,” he said.

Quentin Agnello is a University of Arizona alum and freelance journalist in Tucson. Contact him at qsagnello@gmail.com.

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