Voter Registration Issue

[mom2scouts]

In my state, if you are 17 and will be 18 before the next General Election, you can register to vote. DS will turn 18 right before the General Election, so he decided he would go ahead and register as a voter. Our state cancelled in-person primary voting because of Covid-19 and is only allowing voting by mail for the primary. DS got a letter from the Board of Elections after he registered online and, instead of being voting information (usually they send a postcard with precinct and voting location), it was a letter telling him he's not eligible to vote in the primary because he didn't register at least 30 days before the election. He was not expecting to vote in the primary . He was just registering as a voter. I've checked online at our Board of Elections website and he is not listed as a registered voter. Do you think they messed it up because they were dealing with an unusual election issue? The Board of Elections is not open due to Covid-19, so I'm not sure anyone will answer the phones. There's no email address.  How would you handle this?

Edited April 22, 2020 by mom2scouts

[ktgrok]

I wouldn't think he'd be listed as a registered voter until he turns 18? Like, you can fill out the paperwork ahead of time, but not actually be registered to vote?

Edited: So, it really varies. Does this list help? https://www.usa.gov/voter-registration-age-requirements

Edited April 22, 2020 by Ktgrok

[mom2scouts]

Hmm, it seems he could have voted for candidates in the primary. Maybe that's why they sent him the letter. I hope that means they were just concerned with the immediate election primary and will send his voting information later. I just don't want to wait too long thinking he's registered and then find out it's too late (again) for the general election or having him be required to vote with a provisional ballot.

[happi duck]

Sounds like early registering is about the primary and he missed the cut off.  Now he just registers when he's 18 like normal?  What's the cutoff before the general election?  Can he make it?

[ThisIsTheDay]

I would call, and if no one answers, leave a message. Our county elections office is closed--as in closed to the public, but people are still working, and people surely will be working in your office on some level. The office is not abandoned.

[RootAnn]

My DD tried to register to vote last year after she turned 18, but our state wouldn't allow her to do it online until this "calendar year." Weird rules in our state.

I'd have him senda letter back, call, or just wait until after the primary depending on his preference.

[Pam in CT]

10 hours ago, CuriousMomof3 said:

 

Here if you'll be old enough to vote in the general, you can vote in the primary even if you turn 18 between the primary and the general. 

Here too.  

In CT (where 17 yo's who will be 18 by November can vote in the primary even if they're still 17),  we also have to register 30 days before any election including a primary. So he would be unable to vote in the primary but his registration would be valid for the next election by which he was 18 (which could be some teeny school board referendum or municipal board election, not necessarily the POTUS in November).

Given the many last-minute changes in election laws & regulations going on around COVD, I would chalk the letter up either to 1) an honest mistake, or 2) a poorly written letter.

But he wants to check if he's good for November.  I believe you can look up your registration status online in every one of the 50 states.  Google "am I registered" + "state name" and you'll get there, or you can do it through vote.org or RockTheVote or through the League of Women Voter-supported Vote411 ,  

If he's somehow fallen through the cracks, that's frustrating but hes' certainly got time to register by November. Most states now either allow full registration on line (and the Secretary of State/ registrar verifies the drivers license / state ID / passport or whatever primary ID you used to verify eligibility and sending a confirmation/ voter card), or allow the process to be initiated online and completed through the mail.  (The above links will all get your son through to information on the process in his state.)

[mom2scouts]

I followed several of the links to check voter registration and they all show him as not being on the voter rolls.  Early registering is not about the primary, it's available to all 17 year olds who will be able to vote in the general election. I think the whole Covid-19 voting crisis messed things up. I guess he should just wait until after the extended primary voting and then call or write the Board of Elections. I don't know if he should just try to register again because that could cause a duplicate registration. I don't have much confidence in our Board of Elections anyway. We usually vote in person, but needed to vote by mail in the extended primary this year. When I pulled up records to request a ballot, I noticed dh's birth year was incorrect. We have to show ID and he's been voting here for decades. When he called to ask about it, they said someone probably typed it wrong when he first registered and nobody's every caught the error.