Tucson Volunteers Help Unhoused Citizens Get IDs to Vote

When your ID gets stolen while you're sleeping outside, voting becomes the least of your worries. But a Tucson team is changing that by helping unhoused residents rebuild their lives one document at a time.

Valerie ElGhaouti works for VoteRiders, a nonprofit with thousands of volunteers nationwide helping citizens get IDs and birth certificates. She sets up at the Murphy-Wilmot Library, partnering with Karl Wagner, Pima County's outreach coordinator for homeless services.

Wagner knows the challenge well. Documents get stolen frequently when people are living on the streets, and replacing them feels impossible when you're just trying to survive each day.

That's where Tami Christine Martinez's story gets hopeful. After four years of homelessness, she met Wagner less than a week ago. Together with ElGhaoui and the city of Tucson, they're already working to find her housing.

"It's dangerous and it's cold and it's hot and it's just not fun," Martinez said. "I would just really wish that everybody could just get a place to live."

The work goes far beyond voting rights. These simple documents unlock access to veterans' services, Social Security benefits, and stable housing. They're the keys to stepping off survival mode and back into society.

The Ripple Effect

When someone gets their ID back, everything changes. They can apply for jobs, access healthcare, and claim the benefits they've earned. Wagner responds to complaints about unhoused residents in public spaces, but instead of just moving people along, he connects them with real solutions.

VoteRiders operates in 38 states that require voter identification, focusing intensive efforts in nine states including Arizona. ElGhaoui joined after Arizona passed its 2022 law requiring proof of citizenship and residency for all voters.

"It's fulfilling to know that you've had this impact on their life, making them stable and giving the opportunity to breathe," ElGhaoui said. "And that way they can think about what they actually do want in the political process."

The simple act of sitting at a library table is opening doors that seemed permanently closed. For Martinez and countless others, a single ID can be the difference between another night on the streets and a real shot at stability.