Register to vote now ...

Most people who read newspaper editorial pages are already registered to vote. Most probably already know who they’ll be voting for. But most of you probably also have friends, coworkers, and family. And some of them might not yet be registered to vote.

I hope you’ll persuade them to do so. If you take the time to encourage friends and family to register to vote, you’re doing something good for your community. We need more people to cast informed votes. Montana’s elections are among the cleanest and fairest in the country. We need every single eligible Montanan participating if we hope to keep them that way.

If you talk to people you know about registering to vote, you can tell them about the easy options they have for getting it done. Montana residents can register by downloading the form from www.montanavotes.net and mailing it in. If anyone doesn’t want to use the Internet, they can call 888-884-8683. Or, for those like me who prefer the old-fashioned touch, you can visit your county elections office.

The deadline for regular voter registration for the primary election is May 5, 2008. Montana law allows for late voter registration after the deadline, but I hope we can get as many people as possible registered before the deadline.

In larger counties, local elections officials find that waiting until the last minute to register makes harder work on election day. The lines are longer for every voter, and it takes the person registering that much longer as well. Procrastinating makes things harder for everyone. I hope you can help people register as soon as possible. Why wait? It’s easy, it’s free, and it’s the right thing to do.

I’m sure most of us have been following the exciting Presidential primaries. This is a fascinating year for elections, and there’s never been a better time to take part. Historically, Presidential elections are the best time to get new people involved in the process. If you know someone who doesn’t typically register to vote, this is the ideal opportunity to talk to them.

You might even be surprised where you find people to register. People might need to register and not even know it. If someone was once registered but hasn’t voted in several Presidential elections, they may need to register again. If someone registered to vote and has moved since, they should register again.

Who knows? Maybe even a few civic-minded, involved editorial page readers need to register again! If so, I invite you to do so before May 5. And I hope you’ll bring friends.

The primary election is on June 3, 2008. The deadline for regular registration is on May 5, 2008. A new period for regular registration will begin again after the primary election and of course, the general election will be held on November 4. If you miss any of the regular registration deadlines, you can still register late. But your county election workers and your fellow voters will be happier if you do it early.