Preparing for polls: St. Cloud Somali population advised on voting process

By TaLeiza Calloway • tcalloway@stcloudtimes.com • November 3, 2008



Volunteer Jama Omar wants the Somali community in St. Cloud to have a voice in Tuesday’s general election.


He met Sunday with several area Somali residents to educate them on the voting process.

“I’m doing this to say to them, ‘Let the community know you’re here,’” Omar said. “I want to help them.”

During the meeting, Omar walked through Minnesota’s general election ballot, outlining who the candidates are, the meaning of the issues and what residents would be voting for on Tuesday.

“My aim is to show them the person running and who they’re running against,” Omar said. “We don’t care who they vote for. It’s important that they vote.”

Dahir Elmi was excited to participate in Sunday’s meeting. Tuesday will be his first time voting.

Many citizens who live here have never voted because they do not know how, Omar said.

The meeting Sunday was in the Somali Elders Council office in downtown St. Cloud. Ismail Ali, chairman of the Somali Elders Council, said Omar has been working on the voting initiative for the last six months, conducting meetings in different areas of the community.

“For many of them, this is their first time voting,” Ali said.

Ali also works for the St. Cloud school district as a student and family advocate at Roosevelt Education Center. The district is asking voters to approve a school levy. It’s an important issue for Ali.

While he will not be voting Tuesday, he is an advocate for educating others about the process. He projects that more than 500 Somali residents will participate this year.

Hassan Kodah of St. Cloud showed residents where to report for voting on Election Day. Using the Minnesota Secretary of State’s Web site, Kodah looked up polling stations based on residents’ addresses.

“It’s important to educate (about) how to vote,” Kodah said. “We organized on our own to help our community — to build a stronger community,” Kodah said.

In addition to introducing the voting process, Omar also explained that voter registration can be done on Election Day. Volunteers will be at the polls to assist residents, he said.

“It’s important to note that if you are in line at 8 p.m. when polling places close, you still have the right to vote,” Omar told the group. On Tuesday, he will be a volunteer with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to drive residents to the polls, he said.

Some of the questions raised in the meeting included who state candidates were, judges and the meaning of party affiliations.

He was also asked “Which one is better?” about the candidates, and he would tell them he can’t say because that was their decision—a decision they do not have in their country, he said.

The feedback was positive and some asked if they could call him later so that he could help others who could not attend the meeting.

“I’m really happy to see them voting,” Omar said.“It’s really important to me. It’s important to them. Their vote matters.”