Every election day, people walk into the Operations Center at the Shelby County Election Commission and want to register so they can vote in that day’s election.
But they are dismayed to realize they missed the deadline.
“We want everyone who is eligible to vote to cast a ballot in every election,” said Linda Phillips, the new administrator of elections for the Shelby County Election Commission (SCEC). “In order to be eligible to vote, people must be registered 30 days before an election.”
The deadline to register in order to be eligible to vote in the Aug. 4 election is Tuesday, July 5. Voter registration applications must be received by 4:30 p.m. that day, and mail-in applications must be postmarked by that date.
People can register to vote at either location of SCEC. The downtown office is at 150 Washington Ave., and the Operations Center is at 980 Nixon Drive, near Shelby Farms.
Both offices open at 8:30 a.m. Online voter registration is available at http://sos.tn.gov/.
Anyone who registers online must vote the first time in person and is not eligible to receive an absentee ballot.
“If you are planning a trip around election time, or going away to school, please register in person so we can honor your request for an absentee ballot,” she said.
Request forms for absentee ballots are available under “Voter Information” at shelbyvote.com.
