In a number of swing states, early voting means many people are already casting their ballots. Typically, that entails voting by mail or visiting a county elections office.
But in Iowa, satellite voting — where "pop-up" polling stations allow people to vote at convenient times and nontraditional locations — is growing in popularity.
On a recent afternoon in a Des Moines strip mall, families are stopping in at La Tapatia Tienda Mexicana for their weekly grocery haul. But today, some are doing more than shopping: For just one day, the Latino grocery has been transformed into a satellite polling location.
Mary Campos sits in her walker at the store entrance, encouraging store patrons to cast ballots. "Buenos dias," she tells incoming shoppers. "You can go on in and vote right now."
It's literally a one-stop-shop, Campos says, where you can pick up dinner, register and vote, all in one shopping trip.
"People work; they have two jobs," Campos says. "We don't know what it's gonna be like on Nov. 6. I've encouraged absentee ballots," she adds, "but I think this is wonderful, to have satellite places where they can go vote."
Shopper Ernesto Garcia says he was worried about when, and where, he would be able to vote. "I'm a truck driver, so I don't know where I'm gonna be able to go," he says. When he heard he could cast his ballot at LaTapatia, he headed there.
Enlarge Sandhya Dirks for NPR
Democrats have been particularly active in establishing satellite locations. This grocery store location was set up by the Obama campaign.