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VOTER REGISTRATION, EDUCATION & MOBILIZATION

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Get the Facts ...

ELECTION DAY
United States Presidential Election Day is Tuesday, November 4, 2008

CAN’T GET TO THE POLLS TO VOTE
Any registered voter may vote by absentee ballot.  You merely have to affirm, on the oath, that you will be absent or unable to vote in person in the election.

IDENTIFICATION NEEDED
If you are voting for the first time in Maryland, you will be required to show identification. You will be asked to provide identification if: You are voting for the first time in Maryland; You registered to vote by mail on or after January 1, 2003; and You have not previously met the identification requirements of the federal Help America Vote Act. If you registered to vote after January 1, 2006, you most likely satisfied the identification requirement during the registration process. If you did not satisfy the requirement, your local board of elections would have notified you and requested information to satisfy the identification requirement.

HOURS FOR VOTING
The voting polls are open continuously from 7:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m.  As long as you are in line at 8:00 p.m. and are on the voting rolls you can vote.  Make certain that your watch is correct and if you are there by 8 pm you make certain that an election day official recognizes you as being in line and on time.  An election official should stand at the end of the line at 8 pm signaling who is the last person in line or close the door behind the last eligible voter.

WHAT KIND OF VOTING MACHINE WILL YOU USE?
You will be voting on a touch screen voting system.

CAN I BRING SOMETHING IN WRITING TO HELP ME WITH CASTING MY VOTE?
Yes, a voter may take any written or printed material into the polling place that will assist with preparing the ballot.

CAN I WEAR MY CANDIDATES SHIRT AND CAP?
A voter may wear campaign paraphernalia (buttons, t-shirts, or stickers) into the polling place while he or she is there to vote (the voter may not linger in the polling place after voting).

I HAVE TO WORK ALL DAY ON ELECTION DAY
In every election, every employer shall permit any registered voter employee a period not to exceed two hours absence from work on election day if the employee does not have two hours of continuous off-duty during the time that the polls are open.  The employer shall pay the employee for the two hours absence from work. The employee shall furnish to the employer proof that he/she has voted.

WHEN IS THE LAST DAY TO REGISTER?
Last Day to register to vote is Tuesday, October 14.  To register you must be a U.S. Citizen and at least 18 years old by November 4^th

CAN FORMER FELONS VOTE?
You can register and vote if you “have completed serving a court ordered sentence of imprisonment, including any term of parole or probation for the conviction.”

I WANT TO EDUCATE MY CHILDREN ABOUT VOTING
You can take up to two children, who are in your care, into the voting booth with you, provided they are not over the age of 13 years and they do not cause a disruption or interfere

I LOST MY HOUSE TO FORECLOURE, CAN I VOTE.
Maryland’s Constitution (Art. I, § 1) guarantees each citizen who is 18 years old and a resident of the State the right to vote. The fact that your home is in foreclosure has no bearing on your right to vote. It may, however, effect where you vote. If you have left your home and taken up a new residence, you will need to update your voter registration (by October 14, 2008) and vote in the election district and precinct for your new residence.

CHECKING TO MAKE SURE YOU ARE REGISTERED TO VOTE

Go the Maryland State Board of Elections website at http://www.elections.state.md.us

Go to Important Headlines - Voter Registration Deadline - October 14, 2008.

CHECK TO SEE IF YOU ARE REGISTERED - and that your registration is up to date. If you are not registered to vote or you need to update your registration, download and submit a voter registration application immediately.

DOES MY VOTE REALLY COUNT?
Yes, your vote counts. As we learned in the United States Presidential Election of 2000 - every vote does count; it just counts in a more complicated way. When voting for the President of the United States please know that you are voting in the State of Maryland Election, not a national election. So your vote counts just as much as anyone else's in your state — but it may count more or less than that of someone living in another state because of size.

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS

The 2000 Bush-Gore contest was hinged on Florida. Florida's 24 electoral votes were decided by a vote count of officially 537 votes in favor of Bush out of a Florida total of about 6 million.

Wisconsin - 5,708 votes in favor of Gore.

Iowa - 4,144 votes in favor of Gore.

Oregon - 6,765 votes in favor of Gore.

Note that this is not unique even in modern USA history. In 1960, JFK won the total USA popular vote over Nixon by a margin of merely 118,000 votes, about 50.1 vs. 49.9!

In 1980 in Massachusetts, Reagan beat Carter by only 6,000 votes. Full turnout in just one neighborhood could have changed the results.

Tags: election 2008