Startup aims to increase responsible voting and voter turnout

Tennessee startup Votus has created a new way to keep up with politics, and this web-based app aims to encourage a more engaged electorate. Votus is a civic tech company that tells users when, where, and how they should vote. Brandon Harris, the politically savvy CEO of Votus, said their main goal is to give every eligible person the means to vote responsibly. He believes there is a need for this sort of technology so the public can have more efficient and honest interactions with the government or possible elected officials. “I think that people don’t have the tools or knowledge they need to interact with their government, which is why we have so much apathy and inefficiency,” Harris said.

The app combines users’ location and interests to create a personalized “V-score,” which provides voting recommendations based on survey answers. Users can select specific interests, such as: blight, economy, budget, public safety, education, etc. Votus also allows the user to apply for an absentee ballot, find the closest polling location, and register to vote.

Harris said that his team wants to make sure the public is receiving all of the information necessary to choose the best government representatives in the most efficient way possible. “People don’t feel like it matters and some people just don’t know where to start,” he said, “so we’re trying to give them a solution to that problem.”

Votus was launched two years ago in Nashville and has now been expanded to include Memphis. Harris said that they are focusing locally at the moment in order to increase voter turnout in the state of Tennessee, home of the lowest voter turnout rates in the country as of 2014. Once interest and membership has grown, they hope to turn Votus into a nationwide voting tool.

Last year only 35% of registered voters in Memphis actually cast a ballot, Harris said they aim to raise that number while also offering easy-to-process information about the candidates. “What it could do for the city of Memphis is to show people who these politicians really are and what they really stand for,” he said.

To sign up for a profile on Votus, visit www.Votus.com. The process is quick and easy, only requiring your location, name, and some basic political opinions.