KSHB 41 reporter Olivia Acree covers portions of Johnson County, Kansas. Share your story idea with Olivia.
Roeland Park City Council recently passed a resolution supporting expanded language access for voting, aiming to make elections more accessible to Spanish-speaking residents in Johnson County.
The unanimous resolution doesn't immediately change what's offered at polling places; however, it sends a message that Roeland Park wants to see progress in making elections accessible to all voters.
"If people have access to this material in their own language, they will be more involved," said Saira Galvan, director of empowerment at El Centro.
Galvan voiced her support for the resolution, believing voting materials in different languages will increase voter participation.
"Sometimes it's even hard for English speakers to understand what's in the ballot. So imagine that vocabulary on someone that English is not their primary language," Galvan said.
She thinks better language access means voters that feel more confident in their choices.
"So they can understand what they're doing so they can feel comfortable on the decisions they're marking," Galvan said.
Roeland Park Mayor Michael Poppa hopes the resolution sends a message to all Spanish speakers in Johnson County.
"Every eligible voter should be able to cast their ballot," Poppa said. "Until we expand language access, not every citizen is able to vote."
Currently, six counties in Kansas require Spanish ballots be available based on the Voting Rights Act, but Johnson County isn't one of them. There was a similar push in Wyandotte county last year.
The Johnson County Election Office said they are "continuing to monitor the county's obligations for language access under federal and state law."
However, Poppa emphasized that the county could provide those materials voluntarily.
"The county is able to do that before meeting that threshold," Poppa said.
For now, Poppa will work on expanding access in his city, and both he and Galvan hope other cities follow suit.
"If one city starts doing this and another one follow it… and it'll be more beneficiary for more people," Galvan said.
"This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy."
