Local Groups Hope To Register Voters

The deadline for residents to fill out a voter registration card is Oct. 12 -- this Friday. After registering, voter information cards are mailed to Orange County voters with their voter precinct and the location of their polling site.

This election year, both the Carrboro and Chapel Hill mayoral seats are up for grabs. Also vacant are four seats on the Chapel Hill Town Council and three seats on the Carrboro Board of Aldermen.

Carolyn Thomas, director of the board of elections, said that in an effort to increase voter turnout, especially among young voters, the Orange County Board of Elections has been including local libraries in the drive to register more voters.

"We will be supplying the local libraries with the forms, but Davis Library on campus has them year-round to encourage student registration," she said.

Thomas said this year the board expects a typical voter turnout.

"The board said that the turnout prediction is about 25 percent, which is about average in comparison to the past few years," she said.

The Orange County Board of Elections does not make any special efforts to get people registered, but Thomas said candidates and civic groups usually conduct special registration drives to gather voters.

One student organization on campus has joined the effort to get students registered.

The Young Democrats went into the community and around South Campus to register students. "On the evening of Oct. 1 we registered 104 folks to vote," said Chris Brook, president of the Young Democrats.

The Young Democrats also provided registration forms at their forum for Chapel Hill Town Council and mayoral candidates Monday night.

Members of College Republicans said they are putting their efforts toward rallying students in support of the recent air strikes against targets in Afghanistan.

College Republicans Chairwoman Rheta Burton said the group does not have plans to do outreach programs regarding registration. "We're not focusing on voter registration," Burton said. "We've been trying to get support for our nation and our troops."

According to the Orange County Board of Elections Web site, mail-in registration forms can be obtained at the Board of Elections office in Hillsborough, the Chapel Hill Town Hall on North Columbia Street and the Chapel Hill Public Library off Estes Drive.

In order to vote in Orange County, a person must be 18 by the date of the general election, a U.S. citizen, an Orange County resident, not a convicted felon and not registered in another county or state.

But Thomas said out-of-state students who are registered in other counties or states should obtain an absentee ballot by calling the board of elections office.

The City Editor can be reached at citydesk@unc.edu.