You don't have to be a new

voter to have questions about the election process when you go to the

polls next Tuesday. And given Fayette County's growth, it's fair to assume

that for many of you, the primaries will be your first experience voting

in the county or perhaps even in the state.

In every election, without

fail, misunderstandings about the process sometimes arise and we have

to clarify things without, if possible, ruffling some already ruffled

feathers. As a poll worker for more years than I like to admit, I'll try

to head off some of your questions, in no particular order:

Q. Why do I have to

tell you I want a Democrat or a Republican ballot?

A. You're merely being

asked in which party's primary you wish to participate. It may help to

view the primaries as two separate elections held on the same day, and

you are completely free to vote in one or the other, but not both. You'll

have to choose which campaign holds the most interest for you.

For example, on this year's

Democratic ballot, there is only one candidate for U.S. Senate, governor,

lieutenant governor, Secretary of State and several other offices because

these people were not opposed within their own party. But three Republicans

are vying to be their party's candidate for each of those offices.

If you request a Democratic

ballot, you'll have no say about who challenges Governor Barnes or Senator

Cleland. And if, by Sept. 10's almost certain runoff, you decide you prefer

the candidate the Republicans chose, you can't jump parties at that point.

The runoff is the completion of the primary contest and you must vote

the party you voted in August.

Please understand, however,

that in the general election on Nov. 5, there will be only one ballot,

and you may choose a Republican in one race, a Democrat in the next, to

your heart's content.

A lot of us don't like this

system, but we're stuck with it for now. Because I'm most concerned about

the contests closest to home this year, two county commission seats I'll

take a Republican ballot, on which three are running for one post, two

for the other. There are no Democratic candidates for County Commissioner,

so a Republican will be elected next Tuesday (or on Sept. 10). If I take

the Dems' ballot, I'll lose my opportunity to choose local governance.

The worst thing about this

is that I'll get swamped with Republican advertising for the next few

months. Which reminds me: Going to the polls is a public event, and whether

or not you voted and in which primary (but not how you voted) is a matter

of public record.

Q. I live near Brooks,

but I work here in Peachtree City. It's all Fayette County, so why can't

I vote here instead of having to rush home to my precinct?

A. Sorry, right now

that's the law. I think it's dumb too, and maybe electronic voting will

start us moving in the right direction.

Q. What do you mean

I'm not registered? I know I registered when I got my driver's license.

A. I hate this one.

We've had couples who were at DMV together, and his registration is valid,

but hers is not. I talked to a licensing officer last year. "People

are under the assumption that because they got a driver's license, they're

registered to vote," he said.

His department sends the applications

to the Secretary of State's office, from where they are forwarded to the

appropriate county. "We process over two million people a year, and

we're by far the greatest information-gathering source there is. But do

the math on 99 percent accuracy in gross numbers that's a lot." In

addition, when they pull complainants' records, they find that "some

have clearly marked on the form that they are not interested in registering

to vote."

Q. I've always voted

here, and I've never missed an election. Why am I not on the list today?

A. We follow up on every

question like this, and I remember only one single time when a voter who

was not on the Fayette County list did appear on the state's master list.

In every other case, there was a good reason why they were not on the

list, such as the college student who had registered in another state

for four years, automatically taking his name off our list.

A new voter registration card

was sent recently to every registered voter in Fayette County. If you

didn't get one, I urge you to call the Elections Office now (770-460-5730,

ext. 5408), or click on www.sos.state.ga.us to check on your status. Don't

wait until election day.

Q. Why can't I use the

voter registration card as I.D. when I go to vote?

A. The short answer

is that it's not on the approved I.D. list. There are more than a dozen

valid I.D.s you may present, or, if you have none of those when you come

to vote, you may fill out and swear to a statement that you are who you

say you are.

Q. Is it true poll workers

will make you turn your shirt inside out if it has a campaign message

on it?

A. Absolutely. It's

happened, and I wouldn't hesitate to request you do so or leave the precinct.

You may not campaign by word or sign within 150 feet of any building where

voting is taking place. This year, the office is actually providing us

with 150-foot long ropes so we can measure off the distance and not have

to rely on guesswork.

Q. When's a good time

to come to the polls? When are you least busy?

A. Tough question. It's

so hard to second-guess voters. We brace ourselves for a lunch-hour rush,

and apparently all the voters think the same way, and the room is empty

from noon to one. The hour after school is sometimes busy, and there may

be a lot of kids in the room then, their parents demonstrating a civic

lesson.

I can tell you when not to

come, and that's at the last minute. If you're in line at my precinct

at closing time, 7 p.m., and all is in order, you can vote after closing,

but if we discover you're at the wrong place and you have to go elsewhere,

you're out of luck.

See you at the polls. We have

an added attraction this time, by the way. One of the new electronic voting

booths will be at each precinct so you can get acquainted. They'll be

universally in use in November.

It's going to be interesting.