VOTE !!! and Protect Your Vote

The following is an email I got from someone or another here in Washington state. I hope the information within is of use to my faithful followers. All 30 of you.

Tomorrow's the day. Just do it.

Are you as excited as I am? Only one day left until we take back our country!

You know whom you are voting for (Barack Obama! Chris Gregoire!). Now you need to take a few simple steps to make sure your vote counts.

We have a Voter Protection team who is dedicated to protecting your vote. We learned a lot from 2004 and the Primary, and we've listened to the problems and questions we've gotten on our Voter Hotline (1-877-WA-CHANGE or 1-877-922-4264).

To learn how to protect your vote, where to vote, or any other information, visit our Voter Information page.

Here is what we've learned about how you can protect your vote:

Mail in your absentee ballot now. Your absentee ballot must be postmarked on Election Day, so you must drop it in the mailbox before the last pickup time listed on the mailbox. However, during the Primary, nearly 6,000 voters put their absentee ballots in the mail on Primary Day, only to miss the last pickup time. Their vote did not count. We encourage you to mail in your ballot as soon as you can today or early on Election Day. Follow the instructions on your ballot about postage and how to mail your ballot.

Haven't received your absentee ballot? We've gotten a lot of questions on our Hotline from people who haven't received their absentee ballot. Is this you or someone you know? To get a replacement ballot, go to your County Auditor's office or dropoff location. If you live in Pierce or King Counties, you can also go to a polling place and vote there by provisional ballot on Election Day.

Remember, you can always vote by provisional ballot. Provisional ballots exist to preserve your right to vote. If you have any problems voting - say, you've moved and haven't changed your registration to your new address - you can always vote by provisional ballot. Just go to your County Auditor's office or any polling place to get a provisional ballot. Here are some situations where you may find yourself needing a provisional ballot:

• You aren't at your designated polling place. Even if you are supposed to be at another polling place, you can vote at any polling place by provisional ballot.
• You've moved and haven't changed your registration to your new address.
• You go to the polls and you're not in the poll books.
• You haven't received your absentee ballot.
• You're an absentee voter and now want to vote in person.
• You're a poll voter, but you don't have the proper ID.

Watch the mail. If there are any problems with your ballot, your County Auditor will notify you by mail. Watch your mail, and if you do get a notice, follow their directions to a T. The Auditor is trying to help you. You can fix your ballot in the week following Election Day.

Every registered voter has the right to have his or her vote counted, and there are measures in place to make it easy for any registered voter to vote. This year, there are a lot of close races, so your vote or the vote of your friends could make the difference. Please forward this mail to anybody you know who has voting questions.

Many thanks,

Jaxon Ravens
Executive Director
Washington State Democrats

p.s. After the election, we will continue working to protect your vote. We'll send staff to counties around the state to resolve any disputes with individual votes. We depend on supporters like you to fund these efforts. Please donate whatever you can to help fund our Voter Protection team.