THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 7, 1996 TAG: 9604070138
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KATRICE FRANKLIN, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 53 lines
As the deadline for registering to vote on local elections approaches Monday, local registrars say they have been flooded with application forms from citizens wanting to vote in the May 7 city council and school board elections.
Those elections feature nearly 130 candidates.
The motor-voter law, which went into effect March 6, makes it easier for residents to register to vote. It allows them to apply through the mail or to sign up at offices of the state Department of Motor Vehicles or other state agencies.
``We'll get four times what we normally get,'' predicted Virginia Beach Registrar Marlene Hager. ``We've seen a great deal from mail and agency registrations. The agencies are picking up people that have never been registered.''
About 2,800 people have registered at the Beach since January, and the office is expecting a total of about 3,500 by the 5 p.m. Monday registration deadline, Hager said.
At last count, Norfolk registrars reported signing up about 1,100 new applicants in March, a month in which the city usually averages about 300 new voters.
Portsmouth, Suffolk and Chesapeake also reported increases in voter registration.
``The community has been quite receptive to the motor voter law,'' said Portsmouth Registrar Delores Overton. ``They have been coming in periodically, and we are steadily getting voter application cards in daily.'' ILLUSTRATION: Graphic
Election deadline
Monday is the last day to register to vote for councils, school
boards.
Details, Page B3
Color photo
BETH BERGMAN/The Virginian-Pilot
Residents such as Roy Wood of Virginia Beach find it easy to
register at booths like the one manned by volunteer Thomas Escoe,
right. ``The agencies are picking up people that have never been
registered,'' said Virginia Beach Registrar Marlene Hager.
KEYWORDS: VOTER REGISTRATION VIRGINIA MOTOR-VOTER LAW by CNB