Live Nation venues to become voting sites for November election

Judy Moreno

While concerts aren't happening because of the coronavirus pandemic, Live Nation is having its venues turned into voting sites for the November elections. The Wiltern and Hollywood Palladium, both in Los Angeles, as well as Emo's in Austin and Buckhead Theatre in Atlanta have all been confirmed as polling locations, and in Philadelphia, The Fillmore is in the final stages of the vetting process that would allow it to become one, too. The promoter is discussing utilizing over 100 of its venues for this purpose with local officials.

"We are proud to partner with Live Nation and announce The Hollywood Palladium and The Wiltern will be Vote Centers in the upcoming Presidential General Election," Dean C. Logan, Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, says. "Live Nation has stepped up to the mic in providing our community safe in-person voting experiences at two iconic music venues. It is collaborations such as this that demonstrate the spirit of community engagement and the strength of our democracy."

In addition, Live Nation says they'll give active employees Election Day off to serve as a poll worker, or half of the day off to vote. They're partnering with Power the Polls, an initiative to address the current poll worker shortage. They're also working with voter registration organization Head Count, More Than a Vote, which works to fight suppression of Black voters, and Civic Alliance, a non-partisan group of businesses devoted to getting the vote out to everyone.

Meanwhile, some NBA arenas (many of which also happen to double as concert venues) will also host voting this election, following a deal between The NBA and NBPA following a series of team strikes in protest of the shooting of Jacob Blake by police, led by The Milwaukee Bucks. "In every city where the league franchise owns and controls the arena property, team governors will continue to work with local elections officials to convert the facility into a voting location for the 2020 general election to allow for a safe in-person voting option for communities vulnerable to COVID," a statement from the NBA reads. "If a deadline has passed, team governors will work with local elections officials to find another election-related use for the facility, including but not limited to voter registration and ballot receiving boards."

NYC's Madison Square Garden, LA's The Forum and Staples Center, San Antonio's AT&T Center, Dallas' American Airlines Center, Atlanta's State Farm Arena, Charlotte's Spectrum Center, and Houston's Toyota Center are among the locations that will hosting.

Brooklyn's Barclays Center has also announced that it will serve as a polling site.