Summer is winding down, and it’s a year divisible by four, so you know what that means. It’s Voting Season!

I know, I know; it seems like Voting Season began in 2022, and if you’re like me, then the last month seemed like a year all on its own, but for most people—no judgement here, seriously—for most people Voting Season 2024 hasn’t even begun yet.

A large chunk of the electorate doesn’t pay attention to the general election until after Labor Day. Totally understandable. Life takes time. Life takes energy and focus. Work, kids, errands, chores, keeping the household humming along, paying the bills, all that; who has time to spend on conventions and rallies and punditry?

But we’re here now. Labor Day is—[checks calendar]—next weekend, and in some states, early voting begins around the 20th of September (yes, really, 46 days prior! I checked it twice.).

Here’s the thing, though. Some states have been cleaning up their voter rolls, purging the registrations of those who may not have voted in a while. That means you may not be currently registered to vote. Re-registering may take some time, depending on your state, so lead-time can be important.

I ask, then, that you take a few minutes and go to Vote.gov, a government voter registration portal that can direct you to your state’s voter registration website. Just select the state in which you vote, and look for the “How to check your voter registration” heading. That’ll take you to your state’s website where you can make sure your voter registration is current (or, if it isn’t, they’ll tell you how you can register to vote). You don’t have to sign in or anything; my state’s website (Washington) just needed my name and birth-date to confirm that my registration is current.

There is a lot of other information at these sites, too, like if you need to update your name or address, or if you need to know about registration deadlines or voting methods/locations in your state.

So please, make sure you are registered to vote, and then make a voting plan (about how you’re going to vote, when you’re going to vote, how you’re going to get to the polling place, what ID you might need to bring, etc.).

Regardless of who you want to be your president, senator, representative, and state and local officials, many of the races are going to be close. The outcome may come down to a few dozen votes in each precinct, so your vote counts! Make sure you’re registered so you can cast it.

Thanks, all.

k

Read Full Post »