Fordham University student volunteers waited outside P.S. 58 in Manhattan yesterday after escorting homeless voters to the polls during a voter mobilization effort organized by The Partnership for the Homeless. Photo by Karen James.

In an election year with massive voter registration mobilizations and turn-out-the-vote drives, advocates for homeless New Yorkers did their part to make the votes of residents of city shelters and others without permanent addresses count in what will likely be another closely contested presidential race.

And in a campaign in which housing and homelessness never registered in either President George W. Bush’s or Sen. John F. Kerry’s platforms, homeless activists and their supporters took their issues to the candidates campaign offices.

Despite the logistical difficulty of registering the homeless, the Partnership for the Homeless, Picture the Homeless and the Coalition for the Homeless spent months dedicating time and resources rallying the homeless vote by registering new voters and holding information sessions about the voting rights of the homeless.

Advocates canvassed the shelters, soup kitchens and food pantries trying to make a registration dent among the approximately 37,000 homeless New Yorkers seeking shelter every night. According to Jené Toussaint of the Partnership for the Homeless, the group signed up approximately 2,200 people in 60 sites since January.

The Coalition for the Homeless did not have data on registrations, but spokesman Patrick Markee said he had noticed an increased interest in the political process among homeless people the group served.

Still, for the most part, the advocates’ task was complicated by many factors, not the least of which was a lack of enthusiasm among registered voters who were homeless about the choices in presidential candidates.

“I don’t really see anyone I want to vote for,” said Rodney, 41, a resident of the Bowery Mission for the Homeless who declined to give his last name. He doubted that he would make it to his polling precinct in Queens on Election Day Tuesday. And he was unimpressed by both candidates. “If Bush wins, we’re in trouble for sure,” he said. “But I haven’t heard Kerry say nothing either.”

Many homeless voters said the Bush and Kerry campaigns focused exclusively on the Iraq war, terrorism and the economy, with no mention of the plight of the homeless. “Everything was war, war, war,” said registered voter Nicole Turner, 24, outside the shelter in Hell’s Kitchen where she lives. “They’re not talking about how they can make a difference.”

Advocates for the homeless were concerned that neither candidate ever mentioned the growing crisis in homelessness in the United States. “I have watched them on TV, I haven’t heard anything about homelessness,” Faye Holley, a Picture the Homeless intern, said about the two candidates. “The candidates should make appointments to come visit the homeless people,” she said. “If you don’t know where the homeless people are at, then how do you know about homelessness?”

In addition, the homeless voter registration drive was complicated by a persistent belief that New Yorkers with criminal backgrounds were not allowed to vote. In fact, any citizen who has served his or her parole or criminal sentences in full is eligible to register and vote.

Many others believed any citizen without an address was not allowed to vote. But a 1984 lawsuit filed by the Coalition for the Homeless established the right of homeless people to vote, even if they use a street corner as an address.

In past elections, lack of identification prevented some registered homeless people from voting when poll workers challenged them. But new laws only require those who registered by mail after January 1, 2003 to provide ID. Additionally, any newly registered voter who cannot provide identification has the right to complete a paper, affidavit ballot that will be screened for eligibility by the Board of Elections.

At a Picture the Homeless rally last Friday outside Kerry’s tucked-away campaign office near Times Square, demonstrators for the homeless tried to bring the issues that concern the poor to the candidate’s attention. The advocacy organization held the demonstration to criticize Kerry for ignoring housing issues throughout his campaign. A similar protest was staged outside Bush headquarters in Queens.

In a list of demands displayed at the Kerry demonstration site, the group asked to meet with the next president to discuss his plans to combat poverty and homelessness. They also asked that homeless be people involved in relevant national decision-making and that the Section 8 federal housing subsidy, which helps almost 2 million low-income households pay for housing, be fully funded and its waiting lists cleared.

Still, one of the demonstrators echoed the frustration common to the disenfranchised group. “There’s a lot of apathy among the homeless about voting,” said Leroy Parker, a member of the groups’ housing committee. “If they don’t hear our issues, why should we vote for either candidate?”