1) Contact your local CAIR-DFW chapter to join your efforts.

2) Gather a reliable team.
It is a lot easier to do all the research necessary to create a voter guide when you are not working alone. If CAIR does not have a chapter in your state, gather two to four members of the community to help you.

Remember, this must be a non-partisan guide to prevent your non-profit organization from being labeled as biased so it is imperative to be impartial when describing all candidates and proposals.

3) Gather information for the voter guide.

• At the beginning of the Voter Guide it is a good idea to briefly elaborate on why it is imperative for all members of the Muslim community to vote.
• Basic Voter Guide Provide information on the following topics related to voting, most can be answered at your State Board of Elections website (Google: “[your state]” and “board of elections.) Try to keep the material to no more than two pages so your final hand-out is only one sheet.
  • When to vote (date and times polls are open)
  • how to find address of polling place
  • what form of identification, if any, is required
  • How to verify that you are registered (usually a phone number or website)
  • Brief outline of voter rights (each state generally lists your rights at the polls)
  • An avenue to address problems, such as discrimination (usually a phone number and ask them to also contact CAIR)
  • Who do I vote for? In the most basic voter guide, the answer is: “CAIR does not endorse campaigns or candidates. Major newspapers may produce a guide to candidate positions.”
  • Who is eligible for and how to cast and Absentee Ballot
  • Does your state allow early voting? How can someone early vote?
• Advanced Voter Guide Provide information on the following topics:
  • A brief description of every candidate running for election and their priorities. Separate the candidates first by what office they are running for and second by party. List all candidates for a particular office
  • List candidate stances on issues of concern to the general population (Note: Do not try to pick and choose issues that will bias voter’s candidate choice.) This information can be obtained by going to the candidates’ websites, looking in the paper, or performing a google search. Find out what Political Action Committees have supported each candidate and who has endorsed each candidate.
• Some good issues to focus on include: education, civil rights, homeland security, deficit and health care.
• Comprehensive Voter Guide Provide information on the following topic:
  • Ballot Measures: include a list of all the propositions that will be on the ballot along with a description of each. These are usually on the State Board of elections website or the website of major local papers. You may also want to include arguments for and against supporting each proposition.
• Extras Include a sample ballot.
• Always Include A disclaimer stating “CAIR does not endorse campaigns or candidates.”

4) Distribute the voter guide.
Distribute your guide free-of-charge to the entire Muslim community. Two excellent ways to do this are through local mosques and the internet.