Election Day 2020: Where To Get The Best Food Freebies And Deals

Has the thought of tomorrow's election got you stressed out? Well, join the club — that club consisting of approximately 330 million or so of your fellow Americans (via the United States Census). We're going to offer a little advice for this tense day: ditch the diet. Sometimes broccoli just doesn't cut it, and carbs, sugar, and fat are the only reliable resources that can get us through this ordeal. Luckily, a number of fast food restaurants are recognizing the solemnity of this occasion and will be doing their best to soothe our pain and anxiety with some good old all-American junk food.

What's more, in an act of bipartisan patriotic generosity, some of these food items will be offered free of charge! Free food is the very best kind, which may be the one thing we'll all be able to agree on tomorrow. (Well, that and wishing it would all be over soon.) So, you know the drill. Don't give in to the temptation to hide beneath the covers all day. Get up, get out of bed, go vote (if you haven't already), then get some fast food freebies to serve as a well-earned reward for doing your civic duty.

You know those cute little "I Voted" or "He Votado" stickers you get once you cast your ballot? While you can't get another one by stuffing the ballot box, since they don't even do that in Chicago anymore, you can get a similar sticker — as well ass a free donut! — if you just stop by Krispy Kreme on election day. What better way to celebrate (or stress eat) than with a donut free of charge anyway?

To get the deal, all you need to do is pop into your local Krispy Kreme on Nov. 3 and you can get both freebies, no purchase needed. Nor will you even need to prove your eligibility to vote, or the fact that you did so. Still, you totally should. After all, without democracy, we very well could be living in a nation with no free donuts, ever!

For the first time in almost a decade, McDonald's is introducing new bakery items to its menu, and what better way to build up demand than to start by giving them out gratis? While this free deal isn't specifically election-related, it does kick off on Nov. 3 running through until Nov. 9. Unlike Krispy Kreme, though, McDonald's does have a few conditions. 

You can't just walk in to a store (or even roll up to a drive-thru window) and demand this deal. Instead, you need to order through the app, and you will also need to purchase a coffee (any size, hot or iced). The one redeeming featuring is that you can supposedly cash in this offer more than once. Each day for a full week (the promo runs through Nov. 9) you can get your choice of a blueberry muffin, a cinnamon roll, or an apple fritter. Here's hoping those freebies don't run out before the vote counting is all done!

While another purchase is required, yet multi-day deal comes from one of McDonald's scrappiest competitors. Wendy's recently introduced a new-and-improved chicken sandwich, and it's are also drumming up new business by offering it for free as an add-on to another purchase (although, unlike McDonald's, it does not require that you purchase any specific item).

While you can get this deal either in-app or in-store, the latter still requires that you download the app. According to a statement provided by Wendy's to TODAY Food, you'll need to show the QR code from the app when you order, and yes, that does require signing up for a Wendy's rewards account. This deal, which is available right away, runs through Nov. 8 — although if you jumped on it last week when this freebie was first available, you'll be able to snag another one since, in Wendy's own words, "To make this promotion as juicy as the sandwich itself, Wendy's is refreshing the offer each week — that means fans have the chance grab TWO free Classic Chicken Sandwiches before this deal ends."

If you voted early, you may want to avoid the crowds by staying in all day. You're bound to get hungry, though, and chewing your nails as you watch the news reports roll in won't really fill you up. Why not order some GrubHub, instead? Several restaurants have special election day offers, according to CNN. (Nice of the outlet to share this, since it's going to be one of the major sources of stress-inducing news.)

Jersey Mike's will send you a free turkey sub with any Election Day purchase of over $10, and it'll also throw in free delivery. Not in the mood for turkey this far out from Thanksgiving? Pret a Manger is offering $5 off any $15 Election Day order through GrubHub. And while these deals aren't specifically election-related, they are running simultaneously: a Burger King promo offering $3 off an $18+ order and P.F. Chang's is discounting any new customer orders by $10.

Are you expecting that tomorrow may turn out to be a long, long day — and an even longer night? So is Boston Market. According to a recent press release (via PR Newswire), it says, "Because Election Day could stretch well into the evening and beyond, Boston Market also wants to make sure that every American remains well fed for the long night ahead." To that end, it is offering one free slider to any customers coming in after 9 p.m. on Nov. 3 (which also just so happens to be National Sandwich Day). This promo will run through closing time, and is meant to draw attention to its new late night menu.

No word, however, on whether it intends to extend the offer should the vote counting last for more than one night. After all, Boston Market might go broke if vote counting runs into weeks, or even months as it did around the turn of the millennium.

Vote by mail? You can get a free food offer via USPS, as well. Bobo's wants to reward you for "get[ting] oat the vote" (did you just say that in your head in a Canadian accent?) with one of its products, for free. All you need to do is fill out this online form and the brand will mail you a coupon for one free bar, good wherever its stuff is sold (Kroger, Albertsons/Safeway, Whole Foods, and Walgreens all carry Bobo's products). Although it does not require it, the form does allow you to an upload an image, maybe of your vote sticker, a polling place selfie, or something of the sort, which Bobo's will presumably post on its social media channels.

Enlightened will also send you a coupon for its low-calorie ice cream products. In order to get it, though, you need to post an Instagram story using the word "vote." You'll also need to tag them (of course, otherwise it won't know to send you one), and you'll have to do so by Nov 3. Don't just respond to its Instagram post with the word "vote," though, since that will not satisfy its conditions, nor does the brand seem to be monitoring/responding to comments.