We ALL need to confirm our voter registration.  In fact, if you've done so already, check again since unlawful purging of names from the rolls is ongoing in many states.

Even in states where registration deadlines have expired, it's still possible that some county clerks will allow you to show identification to them before November 4 so you can vote on a regular vs. provisional ballot.

You really don't want to use a provisional ballot if you have a choice. Large numbers of provisional ballots will be thrown away. (Note that some states allow provisional voters to take further steps for a limited time after the election so their vote can be counted.) Analysis of the 2004 election showed that a third of all provisional ballots - as many as 1 million votes - were uncounted, with similar results in 2006.

According to USPS communications available only to Postal Service employees, "Absentee balloting materials must not be detained or treated as unpaid mail." (The foregoing was dictated over the phone to me by a USPS customer service representative.)

The U.S. Postal Service should make its no-return policy public and ensure that local post offices know as well.  

So why should you care and bother to add postage to your absentee ballot before mailing it? Well, we're still going to end up paying for this postage one way or the other, starting with higher postage rates.

There is one thing on which there is bi-partisan – indeed, non-partisan – agreement: the voter turnout on Election Day will be of historic proportions.

Unless you are certain you can spend however long it takes (remember Ohio: up to 12 hours in the cold and rain…) for you to wait in line to vote on November 4, apply for a mail-in (absentee) ballot or vote early in person, if either option is available to you .

Polling places were overwhelmed during the primaries this year with a record 56 million voters, 23 million more than ever before. Many millions of voters have been registered since then, with an increasing and intense interest in this presidential election. Two-thirds of voters will encounter new equipment, and we can expect more instances of all-too-common flawed machinery.

In this divisive presidential election season, one thing everyone agrees on is that voter turnout is likely to hit historic highs. Electionline.org reports that the number of voters, in 36 states, during the recent presidential primaries was the highest in eight years. But there is also cause for great concern, because history shows that more and more voters are also being disenfranchised.

Recently, the Washington Post and Wired paint a frightening picture:

• The Social Security Administration reports a 28.5% error rate between its database and voter registration records.
• In August, Wisconsin election officials found an over 20% mismatch rate between motor vehicle and voting data in a test of 20,000 names.
• Thousands of people were blocked from voting in Florida in 2006 and 2007 because of bad registration matches.
• In 2006, more than 20,000 voters abandoned efforts to vote in Denver because of voting machines crashing.

Ironically, these problems are at least partly due to efforts to improve the voting experience. Congress passed something called the Help America Vote Act after the 2000 presidential election problems – a time when more than 1.3 million registered voters complained of registration failures - and allocated $3 billion to overhaul and update the system.

Now that you've registered for class, it's time to register to vote and confirm your correct information is on the voter rolls. The deadline may be less than a month away . Many states close registration as early as October 6. (In Nevada , mail registrations must be postmarked no later than October 4; and Mississippi has a Friday, October 3, deadline).

For a useful state-by-state interactive guide, check out the Legal Guide to Student Voting by the Brennan Center for Justice at NY University School of law. Here's their list of complete state write-ups.

Now that you are registered, consider voting early if you are in one of the 34 states that offer "no excuse" absentee (vote by mail) voting or "no excuses" in-person "early voting" at the office of the county elections official. According to the Early Voting Information Center (Reed College, Oregon), these states are:

Don't worry about registration if you are in North Dakota - it's the only state in America that does not require voter registration.

You can wait until Election Day to register in Idaho, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, Wyoming. Note that in Montana: (1) on Monday November 3 only, you will NOT be able to register at the county clerks office between 12 Noon and 5:00 p.m.; and (2) on Election Day November 4, you may only register at the county seat in the county clerks office, but may do so up until poll closing time.

Registration

1. Check your voter registration status now: depending on the state, voter registration can close as early as October 4 (the mail registration or non county clerk agency deadline in Nevada). Call or go online to your local elections office, give them what you think your registered name and address are, and ask the office to confirm that you are registered and eligible to vote in the November election. If there is any doubt, immediately re-register in person at the elections office.

2. If you aren't registered, personally visit the elections office (bringing some form of ID with name and address with you in case they ask) and get registered. Now is the time to do this, because come October, when registration closes in many states, elections offices will be flooded with applicants and will be crowded.

In an August 21 WSJ article, ‘Getting Your Vote in Early,' which appeared on the front page of ‘Personal Journal' section, the author incorrectly listed a Kansas registration deadline as September 19, rather than October 20. Fortunately, ElectionPreparedness.com blogger Steve Kamp drew the author's attention to the error, quoting information from the Secretary of State's website and directing her to ElectionPreparedness.com.

Registration Deadlines for all states.