Planning to vote? Here s what you need to know

11/2/2008

As in all elections, the hardest part may be making up your mind on the issues and candidates on the ballot.

Other than that, the process should be relatively painless.

Many Ohioans as many as a third, by some predictions will already have voted before Election Day because of a new state law allowing all registered voters to cast absentee ballots.

Michigan does not have early voting.

Voting is from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. in Ohio and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. in Michigan.

If you re planning to vote on Tuesday and you re not sure where you re supposed to do so, information on the location of your polling place is available at www.sos.state.oh.us or www.michigan.gov/sos/.

Lucas County uses touch-screen voting machines, but voters have the right to request a paper ballot.

Voters with a physical or mental disability, or who are unable to read or write, may be assisted by anyone of the voter s choice, except a candidate, the voter s employer, or a representative of the voter s union. The voter also may be assisted by two poll workers of different political parties. No one may disclose how you voted.

Identification is required to vote and can be any one of the following: a valid state of Ohio identification card, a driver s license, military identification, a copy of a utility bill, bank statement, paycheck, government check, or a government document showing your name and current address.

If you do not have identification, or refuse to provide it, you may cast a provisional ballot but will still have to prove your identity within 10 days.

In Michigan, voters are asked to present an acceptable photo ID, such as a Michigan driver s license or identification card, according to the Michigan secretary of state.

Michigan residents who don t have a valid ID can sign an affidavit stating that they re not in possession of a photo ID and their vote will be counted.

As many as 200,000 newly registered voters in Ohio may find when they get to the polls that their address, driver s license, or last four digits of their Social Security number don t match information contained in a state data base. In some cases, voters may be required to vote a provisional ballot, which will be counted after state election officials confirm there is a proper registration for the voter.

In Toledo, early voting continues today from 1 to 5 p.m. and wraps up tomorrow from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the EMS Training Center at 2127 Jefferson Ave.