PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis is reminding residents of four Rhode Island communities with November elections that they must be properly registered to vote by this Saturday.
Jamestown, Tiverton, Warren and Woonsocket voters are scheduled to go to the polls Nov. 8. State law requires voters to be registered at least 30 days before an election in order to be eligible to cast a ballot.
In order to register and vote, you must be at least 18 years old, a U.S. citizen and a resident of the community in which you wish to vote. In addition, state law requires voters who have moved or changed their names to re-register.
"If you are not sure whether you are registered to vote or whether your voter-registration information is up to date, you can look yourself up using the Voter Information Center on our website," said Mollis.
Even though the deadline falls on a Saturday, local officials have made arrangements for residents to register or update their voter registration at the last minute.
“We are working with every city and town to ensure that everyone who is interested in registering knows where to go and what to do in order to register before the deadline," said Mollis.
Jamestown Town Hall will open from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. for last-minute registrations or updates. There will be two school committee seats on the ballot. As a result of a ballot question passed by Jamestown voters in 2009, the seats will have three-year terms that end in 2014 as the town moves its local elections to even-numbered years in order to coincide with state and national elections.
Tiverton officials will open town hall from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Voters will be asked to consider a bond issue of up to $7 million for a new library as well as whether to replace the traditional Financial Town Meeting with a Financial Town Referendum.
Warren Town Hall will open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Warren has a special referendum that would provide as much as $700,000 to make sewer and storm water improvements in order to improve water quality at Warren Town Beach.
Woonsocket residents can go to the Woonsocket Harris Public Library from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Woonsocket has elections for city council and school committee.
There are two more upcoming milestones in the Nov. 8 election calendar.
Oct. 18 is the deadline to request a mail ballot. Mail ballot applications must be received by the voter’s local board of canvassers by 4 p.m. on the 18th.
After the deadline for requesting a mail ballot passes, voters who unexpectedly find that they will be unable to vote at their polling place can go to their city or town hall during normal business hours through Nov. 7 and request an Emergency Ballot.
Voter-registration forms and mail-ballot applications can be downloaded from the Secretary of State’s website at http://www.sos.ri.gov/elections/forms/.
Secretary of State, Mollis oversees many aspects of federal, state and municipal elections held in Rhode Island. His office also publishes guidebooks that include important dates in the election calendar as well as outline how to run for office and how to register and vote.
Secretary of State Mollis is committed to making it easier for Rhode Islanders to vote, helping businesses grow and making government more open and accessible. For more information about voting and elections, visit sos.ri.gov/elections/voters.
MEDIA CONTACT: Chris Barnett at 222-4293 or cbarnett@sos.ri.gov.