INDIANAPOLIS — Makenna Brown, who goes to college six hours away from her Marion County home, didn’t receive her absentee ballot in the mail, leaving her without a way to vote in the 2020 election.
But knowing the importance of voting, her father David drove those six hours Friday to pick her up to give her a chance to vote in person on Tuesday.
“I’m so grateful he drove the six hours to Iowa and brought me,” Makenna, age 19, said.
It was her first time voting in any election. David said they were in and out in 10 minutes at St. Paul's Episcopal Church on Indianapolis’ north side Tuesday morning.
“Once they knew it was Makenna’s first time, [the poll workers] were congratulating her and excited for her,” David said. “I think everybody just knows the importance of this election and seeing more and more young people is a big deal this year.”
They plan on driving six hours back to Cornell College, a small liberal arts college in Mount Vernon, Iowa, on Wednesday.
“We went back and forth a little bit on it,” David said. “It is a long way, but that’s how important it is to us.”
Due to COVID-19, Makenna has been able to attend her classes virtually in the time she’s missed on campus.
David has been voting in elections for about 35 years, he said. That’s now a streak Makenna has begun in 2020, but she likely won’t forget her first time voting – when her dad drove six hours to make sure it happened.
