Your guide to voting and campaign activity at UCCS

Ballots are appearing in mailboxes across Colorado ahead of the November 2021 coordinated election. Here’s your guide to voting at UCCS — and, if you’re a UCCS employee, here’s what you need to know about political campaign-related activity and expression.

Voting at UCCS

UCCS Voter Service and Polling Center:

UCCS serves as a Voter Service and Polling Center, and also houses a secure ballot drop box.

The UCCS Voter Service and Polling Center is located in Kettle Creek Room 108, 4785 Clyde Way, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80918. At this location, you may register to vote, update voter registration, request a replacement ballot, mark your ballot using an ADA accessible ballot marking device or drop off your ballot.

The Kettle Creek location will be open on the following dates and times:

Monday, Oct. 25, 2021 – Friday, Oct. 29, 2021, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Monday, Nov. 1, 2021, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Election Day Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

UCCS Ballot Drop Box:

You may also drop off your ballot at UCCS’ secure, 24-hour ballot drop box, located near the southwest entrance to the University Center. During the 2019 general election, this was was the most popular drop-off location in the county.

Find more information on voting and returning your ballot through the El Paso County Clerk and Recorder Office.

Political expression and campaign-related activity reminder for UCCS employees

A variety of state and federal laws and regulations govern political expression and conduct in the university workplace. These laws do not preclude employees from being personally active in elections. However, employees cannot use university resources or represent the university while participating in elections.

General principles:

• Employees have the right as private citizens to freedom of expression and participation in the political process
• When expressing their political views, university employees should endeavor to prevent the appearance of university partiality in political campaigns
• Private political activities must be conducted on personal time and without using university resources

Employees should refrain from the following activities while at work:

• Sending emails from university-hosted email accounts in support of or in opposition to candidates or ballot initiatives
• Using university office supplies (including computers, copiers, and fax machines) to create campaign materials
• Making calls on university phones in support of or opposition to a political candidate or ballot initiatives
• Using university computers to make monetary contributions to political campaigns
• Placing campaign materials in locations not designated for general signage.

In general, employees may engage in the following activities while at work:

• Discussing political issues and political campaigns with one another while on break
• Wearing buttons or clothing promoting a particular candidate or issue, provided that the employee does not regularly interact with the public as part of her job duties
• Placing a bumper sticker on a personal vehicle
• Participating in campaign-related activities on personal time

Because university email addresses are generally public and published on various websites, employees may receive electronic mail messages on their university-hosted email accounts from candidates and campaigns. Such emails are not illegal. The university cannot know or block every campaign- or candidate-related email account. Installing restrictive “spam” filters would have limited success with such messages, which originate from many different sources. It is important to remember, however, that the transmission of such emails to you does not constitute University of Colorado endorsement of any candidate or campaign. Employees should refrain from using university email accounts to forward candidate or campaign-related messages for the purpose of expressing opposition to or support for the relevant candidate or campaign issue.

University employees should always be aware that, as public employees, their activities may be subject to heightened scrutiny by the media and members of the public. Accordingly, they should take care to ensure that their private activities do not compromise their ability to carry out their official duties.