By Michael Aushenker
Special to The Lookout

October 18, 2010 -- On Nov. 2, some 30 Santa Monica homeless persons will enter a polling booth and, in some cases, cast a vote for the first time in their lives, thanks to a new program launched by Step Up on Second.

The Santa Monica-based social services agency teamed up with the local chapter of the League of Women Voters to help give a political voice to its homeless clients during a voter registration drive launched September 30

Step Up provides its center’s location as a mailing address, allowing the participant to receive essential voting materials in the mail. If the participant has trouble reading, agency staff will help them read and mark their ballots.

The number that registered “is much more than we expected,” said Les Jones, who sits on the board of directors and on the housing committee at Step Up on Second, which provides housing and support services for people affected by mentally illness.

“We need to give our members credit," Jones said. "We reached out to them, a lot of times, on a one-on-one basis on the importance to vote. These individuals said, ‘You know, you’re right.’ I’m very impressed with that.”

The newly registered voters are among the 742 homeless persons counted by the City during a census this year. They include 264 individuals living on the street, 423 individuals in shelters and institutions, and 55 living in cars and encampments. The census found Santa Monica's homeless population had dropped by 25 percent since the first census was conducted in 2007.

As part of the program, Step Up also provided a forum for community debates. On the day after each gubernatorial debate, a videotaped copy was screened, allowing members to watch and discuss the issues.

About a dozen homeless members attended each of the debate parties, which were held on September 29, October 3, and October 13.

“Due to the hours of the agency, watching the debates live wouldn’t be practical,” Jones said of the screenings. “ We would pause it and discuss what they went over. It never ceases to amaze me the depth they have of what’s going on.”

Like many voters, the homeless are voting their pocketbooks. The top political issue for the homeless are the looming cuts in Supplemental Security Income, Jones said.

“In this budget crisis, they’ll have their income cut even more,” he said. “The number one reason why they’re getting involved in the process is because their benefits will be taken away.”

Safety on the streets is another top concern among the newly registered homeless voters, since those living on the streets are the greatest victims of unreported crime.

“They basically sleep with one eye open all the time,” Jones said. “It’s really a tough way to live.”

Jones first experimented with the voting program during the last presidential election. Before the 2008 race, Step Up on Second member Thomas Hawkins came up to Jones and told him, “I signed up to vote for the first year ever. There’s only one problem: I don’t know how to read and write.”

Jones recalled helping Hawkins fill out his ballot. “He got the ‘I voted’ sticker and he wore that thing with pride,” he said.

Jones intends to continue the registration drive in future elections. His goal is simple: “To get our members involved in the community again.”

Jones estimates that nearly 40 percent of Step Up’s 1,200 clients are homeless. While registering 30 of them may not seem like much, it’s a still a victory, he said.

Jones believes those who did not register suffered from a “self-imposed stigma” and felt disenfranchised. “They don’t feel that their voice will make a difference,” he said.

Jones, who himself spent many years being homeless, has advice for Step Up clients who do not feel empowered.

“When you’re in the voting booth, you are the one making choices," Jones said he tells them. "No one is more powerful than you are.”