2006 Press Releases

August 15, 2006

NASS Launches First-Ever National Voter Education Campaign to Offer an Online, Step-by-Step Guide to Voting in All 50 States

Contact: Meredith Battle Imwalle, 703-786-1823, or Kay Stimson, 202-624-3528

WASHINGTON, Aug. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) today launched the first-ever national voter education campaign to provide eligible voters from all 50 states with the information they need to cast their ballots in 2006 -- all on one Web site. The campaign's centerpiece, http://www.canivote.org, is a one-stop shop that provides voters with step-by-step instructions for voting no matter where in the United States they live.

The Can I Vote? Campaign is designed to help answer the two questions voters most often asked in 2004, according to data collected by the Election Protection hotline: "Am I registered to vote?" and "Where is my polling place?" The Campaign Web site provides links to online voter registration lookup tools and polling place locators on state and local Web sites. It also includes an interactive directory of local election officials.

The Campaign and its Web site will also provide additional information voters need, including the voter registration deadlines and polling place hours for every state and each state's voter identification requirements.

"Now, instead of having to search the Internet for voting information, voters can just visit one Web site to find links to all of the information they'll need to prepare themselves for the 2006 elections," said NASS President and Vermont Secretary of State Deb Markowitz. "Who better than the nation's chief state election officials to provide answers to voters' questions and to make voting as simple as possible?"

CanIVote.org features a step-by-step guide to voting in 2006:

Step one, Find out if You're Registered, offers links to 52 state, county and city Web sites that allow eligible voters to check their voter registration records and includes a link to an online voter registration application for anyone who is not yet registered.

Step two, Locate your Polling Place, includes links to 81 online services, provided by state and local election offices, that match the voter's address to the correct voting location.

Step three, Know What Kind of ID is Required, enables voters in all 50 states to determine what kinds of identification their home state requires in order for them to vote.

Step four, Save the Date, includes a list of primary/caucus election dates and a schedule of polling place hours for each state, as well as links to information about early or no-excuse absentee voting early for those states that allow it.

Step five, Learn about the Candidates, directs the eligible voter to a Web site that provides information about candidates and officeholders in the voter's district.

Step six, Be a Poll Worker, encourages eligible voters to consider serving as poll workers and features a drop-down menu with 119 links to more information on state and local Web sites.

Step seven, Vote!, urges eligible voters to participate and to consider taking friends and family members who are eligible to vote with them to the polls.

The Campaign will run through November 2006 and will include voter outreach through media.

Founded in 1904, the National Association of Secretaries of State is the oldest professional, non-partisan organization of public officials in the United States. Association members include the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the territories of American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. For more information, visit http://www.nass.org.