By Myrna Trauntvein
Times-News Correspondent
After the Office of the County Clerk processes your
application for voter registration, they will send you a
voter registration card.
Once you register to vote, you will be sent a Voter
Information Card, which lists your precinct number and
various political jurisdictions, i.e. congressional
district, state house and senate, county council, city
council, local school board, etc.
If you do not receive this card or lose it before
Election Day, contact your county clerk, Pat Ingram, Juab
County Clerk, to find out where you can vote and to request
a replacement card.
County clerks determine where polling places will be
located.
In addition to various government buildings, polling
places can include private facilities, such as churches and
private homes. All polling places must meet the
accessibility requirements of the Americans with
Disabilities Act.
You must I bring certain items with you when you
vote.
If you are voting for the first time in the
jurisdiction and you did not provide valid voter
identification when you registered to vote, you will be
required to present proof of identity or proof of residence.
(Utah Code § 20A-3-104). If you did not bring proper
identification or proof of residency, you will be issued a
provisional ballot.
Election judges can request identification if they do
not know you and have reason to doubt your identity. (Utah
Code § 20A-3-104) If this is the case and you did not
bring identification, you will be issued a provisional
ballot.
If you are voting during the early voting period or
are voting in person by absentee ballot, then you must bring
valid voter identification. (Utah Code § 20A-3-104)
Valid voter identification is either a valid form of
photo identification that shows your name, photograph, and
current address; or two different forms of identification
that show your name and current address. (Utah Code §
20A-1-102).
Contact the State of Utah Elections Office or your
county clerk for a complete list of what qualifies as valid
voter identification.
The general election is Tuesday, November 7, 2006.
The polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. You have the
right to cast a vote if you are in line at the time the
polls close. (Utah Code § 20A-1-302)
If you are scheduled to work on Election Day, your
employer must allow you to leave your workplace for up to
two hours in order to vote. You must ask for this leave
before Election Day and your employer may not deduct from
your usual salary or wage because of your absence. (Utah
Code § 20A-3-103)
Voters may also vote during the early voting period,
which will take place between Tuesday, October 24 and
Friday, November 3. (Utah Code § 20A-3-601) Contact
your county clerk to find out times and locations for early
voting.
Minimize potential problems by being prepared on
election day.
Call your county clerk to double-check your
registration status and polling place at least 15 days
before Election Day.
In Juab County it would be wise to visit the county
clerk's office and practice on the new voting machine set up
in that office for the convenience of all voters.
Bring your voter registration card and a photo ID to
the polls.
Vote early in the day.
Read all instructions carefully.
Take your time in the voting booth. You have up to ten
minutes to cast your ballot. (Utah Code §
20A-3-105)
If you are scheduled to work on Election Day, ask for
time off to vote in advance.
Become as familiar as possible with the new electronic
voting equipment that will be used statewide for the first
time this November.
The State of Utah has an online demonstration of the
electronic voting equipment at
http://www.leaveyourprint.com.
If a poll worker tells you that you are not on the
list of registered voters but you believe that you should be
because you submitted a registration form before the
deadline, first ask him or her to check the list again. If
that fails, show the poll worker your voter registration
card or some other form of identification. By law, you will
be permitted to vote with a provisional ballot even if the
poll worker cannot confirm your registration. (Utah Code
§ 20A-3-105.5)
The provisional ballot will NOT count unless it is
later determined that you are eligible to vote and that you
voted the provisional ballot in the correct precinct. (Utah
Code § 20A-4-107)
If you need instructions on how to use the voting
equipment in your precinct, ask a poll worker for help. You
have the right to receive instructions. (Utah Code §
20A-3-109)
If you need assistance because you are disabled,
unable to read, or speak a language other than English, you
may be accompanied into the voting booth by a person of your
choice who may assist you in voting (as long as that person
is not your employer, an agent of your employer, a
representative of your union, or a political candidate).
(Utah Code § 20A-3-108)
You must be registered in order to vote. (Utah Code
§ 20A-2-102)
You can register to vote in Utah if you are a citizen
of the United States; have resided in Utah at least 30 days
immediately prior to the election; are at least 18-years-old
on or before the election; and are not a convicted felon
currently incarcerated for a felony. (Utah Code §
20A-2-101)
If you are a convicted felon, your right to register
to vote and vote in an election is restored when you are
sentenced to probation by the sentencing judge; are granted
parole by the Board of Pardons; or have successfully
completed the term of incarceration to which you were
sentenced. (Utah Code § 20A-2-101.5)
If you are registering by mail, the deadline for
registering to vote is 30 calendar days prior to the
election. (Utah Code § 20A-2-202) To vote in the 2006
general election, your voter registration form must have
been postmarked no later than Tuesday, October 10.
If you are registering in person at your county's
Office of the County Clerk, you must do so no later than 15
calendar days prior to the election. (Utah Code §
20A-2-201) To vote in the 2006 general election, you must
register in person no later than Monday, October 23. (That
date has passed.)
On Friday, October 20 and Monday, October 23 between 8
a.m. and 8 p.m., you could have registered to vote at any
satellite registration location in your county. (Utah Code
§ 20A-2-203). Those dates have passed.
If you registered in person after October 10 at either
the Office of the County Clerk or at a satellite
registration location, you will not be eligible to vote
early and you must vote on Election Day. (Utah Code §
20A-2-201 and § 20A-2-203)
It was possible to register by mail but those dates
have also passed for the 2006 election. You may still
register to vote for the next election, by using the mail-in
registration form available on the Utah State Elections
Office website at
http://www.elections.utah.gov/VoterRegistrationForm.pdf. If
you failed to register this election, go ahead and register
so you will be eligible for the next one.
Forms are also available in the white pages of your
phone book, and at state offices, such as the Drivers
License Division; Division of Workforce Services; Utah State
Department of Health, Women, Infant and Children (WIC)
Offices; the Division of Services for People with
Disabilities; the Department of Rehabilitation; and public
colleges and universities.
You may also contact your county clerk to request a
form or to register in person. You can find the contact
information for your county clerk at
http://www.elections.utah.gov/countyclerks.html, or you can
look it up in the government section of your phone book.
If you are a first time voter and are registering by
mail, you should include with your voter registration form a
photocopy of a valid form of photo identification that shows
your name, photograph, and current address; or two different
forms of identification, such as a current utility bill,
government check, or paycheck, that show your name and
current address. In addition, on the registration form you
must disclose your driver's license number, state
identification number, or the last 4 digits of your social
security number. (Utah Code § 20A-2-104)
If you have moved or changed your name since
registering to vote, you must fill out a new voter
registration form.
If you are homeless, you may use the address of the
Road Home homeless shelter for your residence. The shelter
address is 210 S Rio Grande Street, Salt Lake City, UT
84101.
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