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Four weeks from tonight, the election will be over.
One understandable reaction to that is: Thank heavens.
Another might be: I need to learn more about the propositions or the candidates before I make my decisions.
Four weeks from tonight, the election will be over.
One understandable reaction to that is: Thank heavens.
Another might be: I need to learn more about the propositions or the candidates before I make my decisions.
Today we offer information for voters who are either eager or procrastinating:
If you regularly vote by mail or have asked for an absentee ballot for this election, look for your ballot later this week. Remember, you must sign the outside of the envelope. If you don't, your ballot cannot be counted.
There's still plenty of time to register to vote if you've moved, changed your name or never voted before. Oct. 22 is the deadline. The easiest way is through the California Secretary of State's Web site, http://registertovote.ca.gov. Application cards are available at county libraries.
Once you mark and return your mail ballot, you can check on whether it was received at the elections office by going to the elections office Web site. For Merced County, it's www.co.merced.ca.us/
elections. Click on "Vote by Mail Ballot Tracker" and provide the requested information. Stanislaus and San Joaquin counties also offer this service.
Finally, be skeptical of campaign advertising, especially ads put out by the independent expenditure committees, also known as super PACs (political action committees). The mailers and TV advertisements seem to be getting meaner and more misleading every year. Some of these committees spend as much or more in attack ads than in material supporting their candidates. All campaign advertising is required to bear the name of the entity that paid for it. The challenge is that the names are meaningless.
If you vote by mail early in the process, then the most aggressive campaigns will know this and will leave you alone. That's potentially a good thing if you're tired of robocalls and mailers. However, in some of the city council and other races, forums are still being held.
For instance, the Associated Students of Modesto Junior College and the Freedom Forum Club have scheduled a candidate forum Oct. 25 featuring Adam Gray and Jack Mobley, the candidates for the 21st Assembly District, which includes all of Merced County and about half of Stanislaus County. The forum will begin at 6 p.m. in the Music Recital Hall (Music 108) on the MJC East Campus.
The final presidential debate is not until Oct. 22.
We urge citizens to take the time to become informed and to vote.
