Volunteers help unhoused Tucsonans get documents to vote

As cars drive by and birds chirp outside, Valerie ElGhaouti sets up a table in the reception area of the Murphy-Wilmot library.

She’s a paid organizer for VoteRiders, a nonprofit that helps U.S. citizens obtain the legal documents that they need to vote, such as IDs and birth certificates.

“We have thousands of volunteers all over the country,” she said. “Right now we have paid organizers in six states. We focus on nine, but there are 38 states right now that require identification in order to vote.”

On the library’s back lawn, ElGhaouti says she was inspired to work for VoteRiders after Arizona passed a law in 2022 mandating proof of citizenship and residency for all voters.

“Adding these barriers of requiring documentation is really a solution without a problem, because the amount of voter fraud that was transpiring was minuscule,” she said. “But the number of people that will be affected and not actually be able to cast a ballot even though they should legally be able to … there’s no balance to that.”

After manning the table for about an hour, ElGhaouti is joined by Karl Wagner, who enters through the automatic door. As the outreach coordinator for Pima County’s Homeless Services, he responds to complaints about the unhoused in public places and tries to get them the help they need. He says the unhoused often don’t have documents because they’re frequently stolen.

“And that’s the thing, is most people out there are kind of in survival mode, and they don’t really care what they need to do to get what they need to survive, including going through your stuff while you’re sleeping and taking whatever you have,” Wagner said.

Soon, Tami Christine Martinez arrives. Wagner has been collaborating with ElGhaouti and the city of Tucson to find housing. She’s been on the streets for four years now, but after working with Wagner for less than a week, she’s hopeful she’ll find a place soon.