Voter Registrations Lag With Only a Few Days Left to Sign Up

The politicians and ballot initiative combatants may think the Nov. 4 election is crucial, but the California secretary of state’s office has spotted a different feeling in the general population.

“We had a booth at the State Fair recently and I was shocked at the lack of interest in registering to vote,” said Melissa Warren, assistant media director for the secretary of state’s office.

The deadline for registering for this election is Monday. Republicans, Democrats and numerous interest groups are planning major drives for the weekend.

Warren said, “The reasons people usually give for not wanting to register are ‘All politicians are crooked,’ or ‘One vote won’t make a difference anyway,’ or ‘I don’t want jury duty.’ ”

She pointed out that prospective jurors are drawn not just from voter rolls but also from Department of Motor Vehicle lists. There were 12.5 million registered voters in California as of Sept. 5, Warren said, far below the 17.2 million people who are eligible to vote. There were 13.1 million registered voters in November, 1984.

“There is a certain mindless contentedness out there that makes it hard to register voters this year,” said Mary Hughes, executive director of the California Democratic Party, which has 6.3 million voters registered, down from 6.8 million two years ago.

Not surprisingly, the Republicans, who control the White House and the California governorship, have a different interpretation of slow voter registration this year.

“When things are going well, when there is no compelling issue in an election, then it’s harder to get people interested in registering,” said Joe Irvin, communications director for the California Republican Party, which has 4.7 million voters registered, about what it had two years ago.

(There are also more than 1 million voters who decline to state a party and about half a million in miscellaneous parties.)

State Board of Equalization member Conway Collis, who is supervising a special voter registration project for the Democrats, noted that in the 1960 election, 72% of Californians eligible to vote turned out. By 1984 that figure had dropped to 57%.

“Major decisions are being made by fewer and fewer people,” said Collis. “We have to reverse this trend, especially when you think about the important laws we are making simply through ballot propositions. Look at the Coastal Protection Act, the lottery and Proposition 13.”

Many people in both parties think that the slowness of registrations means voter turnout will also be low on Nov. 4. Only 40% of registered voters participated in the June 4 primary, the lowest since 1928, according to Warren.

For now, both parties are trying to focus on the bright spots.

Democrats are impressed with Collis’ project, which has added more than 100,000 new Democrats statewide, all of whom will get special reminders to vote on Election Day.

Republicans are especially excited by their success in Orange County, where recent efforts have increased their countywide lead over Democrats to nearly 200,000 voters.

Voter registration forms are available at post offices and numerous commercial outlets, including McDonald’s restaurants and 7-Eleven stores. The state’s toll-free voter information number is 800-345-VOTE.