Indivisible West Suburban Chicago, a grassroots organization that opposes President Trump and his administration, will be holding another rally from 1 to 2 p.m. Oct. 17 at Tower Green in Western Springs.
But unlike previous gatherings, the No Kings: Early Vote gathering this one will not have people toting signs that oppose Trump and his policies.
There won’t be any chants about him.
Nor will people be waving at passing motorists who honk their horns in support.
This rally is non-partisan with the simple message organizers hope is heard loud and clear: Be sure to vote in the coming election.
Be it my mail-in ballots, absentee voting that opens Oct. 19 at various locations in the area, or the tried-and-true method of walking into a polling place on Nov. 3, they want you to vote.
Mike Waters, 68, of La Grange, part of the local Indivisible leadership team, said it “basically is a get out the vote rally.”
“It’s to get people excited about voting and, more specifically, to encourage them to vote early if possible,” Waters said.
Tower Green, 914 Hillgrove Ave., Western Springs, is located one block west of Wolf Road just north of the Burlington Northern train tracks.
“We’re also giving them opportunities to sign up for ways to encourage other people to vote. We’re asking them to reach out to family and friends and encourage them to vote and vote early,” he said.
The group will distribute early voting information at Metra stations in Brookfield, La Grange and Western Springs the week of Oct. 19, Waters said.
Indivisible encourages early voting because it gives people “more flexibility” rather than waiting until Election Day, he said.
“Another is, you avoid any potential conflicts on Election Day. Something may come up where you’re unable to vote,” Waters said.
And, yes, the group is concerned about potential interference from the administration..
“This way, if people learn their voter registration has been voided for some reason, they have time to fix it. Or, you know, worst case scenario is Trump does have people out at the polls, National Guard, ICE, whatever, people don’t have to deal with that,” Waters said.
He stressed the rally is non-partisan.
“Absolutely, anybody can come. We’re not supporting any particular candidates at this event. No candidates will be speaking. … We’re hoping to make it fun and festive,” he said.
At the event in Western Springs, light refreshments will be available along with live music. Two Indivisible members will perform a skit about the importance of early voting.
“This is probably the most important non-presidential election of my life,” Waters said.
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Noting the “the increasingly erratic behavior from Trump and the Republicans in Congress are obviously not going to do anything about it, it’s important Democrats win at the least the House, if not the House and Senate, to provide some checks and balances,” he said.
Another Indivisible leadership team member, Mary Ann Quinlan, 69, of Western Springs, isn’t sure how many people to expect at the rally.
Voting early “may seem like a small thing,” she said, but many people are accustomed to voting on Election Day, not before.
“We want people to have a chance to protect from last-minute surprises,” Quinlan said. .
“We’re also hoping with more early votes, word will get out. There are so many who don’t know there’s an election on Nov. 3. Many people only vote in the presidential election,” Quinlan said.
“Your vote matters,” she added.
Noting growing turnouts at past No Kings rallies, she said, “we now have another tool and that’s the ballot box. That’s why this event has a different flavor.”
Pamphlets to be distributed will include QR codes to a link tree that has websites from local government and groups like the ACLU about early voting locations, she said.
“Voting itself is an act of resistance and the best voter protection tool, democracy saving tool we have is a big turnout,” Quinlan said.
“We’re trying to get every eligible voter to vote because that’s what democracy is all about,” Quinlan added.
There are not any No Kings rallies planned before Election Day, Waters said.
To learn more about other voting rallies, visit https://www.nokings.org.
Steve Metsch is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.