ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, October 29, 1996 TAG: 9610290055
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: RICHMOND
SOURCE: Associated Press
Virginia's voter registration rolls climbed by almost 300,000 this year under the new motor voter legislation, but registrars said it's doubtful that much increase will be reflected in voter turnout.
A total of 288,501 prospective voters signed up since the first of the year through Oct. 7, when the registration books closed for the Nov. 5 election. That's an increase of about 10 percent.
However, 140,910 people on the rolls are labeled inactive, a new category required by the federal motor voter legislation.
Bruce Meadows, secretary of the state Board of Elections, said the inactive voters are people who can't be located at the address under which they registered.
The motor voter law allows inactive voters to cast ballots if they still live within the jurisdiction where they registered and can prove it.
Meadows said some people classified as inactive would have been purged from the rolls under the old system for failing to vote within the past four years. But the new legislation prohibits purging.
When Congress passed the motor voter legislation, it authorized the Federal Election Commission to assess how effective the law has been at gaining voters, Meadows said. That study has not been completed, he said.
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