The Virginia State Board of Elections is preparing to mail about 4.7 million voter registration cards in the coming weeks, and has launched a half-million-dollar statewide outreach effort in the wake of new voter identification rules.Billboards and other efforts have rolled out as part of a $550,000 communications contract awarded in the run-up to the Nov. 6 presidential election.
The multipronged effort is an attempt by state election officials to educate voters before the election, and to meet specific directives made earlier this year by Gov. Bob McDonnell.
In May, McDonnell signed hotly contested legislation that requires voters without proper ID at the polls to cast a provisional ballot.
The voter would have until noon on the Friday after the election to submit acceptable identification to the electoral board if they want their vote to be counted.
Previously, those who showed up at the polls without proper ID were allowed to vote normally after signing a document swearing they're a registered voter.
The legislation also expands the forms of identification that voters can use at the polls, to include a student ID from a state college or university, a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement or paycheck.
McDonnell approved the legislation — which opponents argued could make it more difficult for minorities and the elderly, among others, to vote — but he ordered the State Board of Elections to issue new voter registration cards and to launch a campaign to communicate the changes to Virginians.
The state board will soon send the new cards, at an estimated cost of $1.35 million, and has signed a contract with JMI Inc. for up to $550,000 to spread the word.
Both of the costs are being paid with state and federal dollars, according to the elections board.
The governor "wants to ensure all Virginians know where to vote and what documents they need to cast their vote following the passage of Voter ID legislation this past session," said McDonnell spokesman J. Tucker Martin. "He believes a strong democracy requires an engaged and involved electorate."
Proponents of the measures say they are designed to prevent voter fraud.
The contract amount includes placing ads on the sides of buses, on light rail and billboards and buying ads for radio and print. Billboard ads are up in Charlottesville, Hampton and Roanoke.
"We want to make sure we hit everybody, and that's, you know, part of why you see the cost, because it's a big state obviously," said Justin Riemer, deputy secretary of the Virginia State Board of Elections. "It's really a comprehensive statewide effort."
The state board also plans to have a presence at various events, including the State Fair of Virginia, several college homecomings and the Richmond Folk Festival.
The agency on Friday launched a new website that includes a page about the new requirements and features a 13-minute video.
Aside from the new ID requirements, many voters could have a new polling place because the state redistricted earlier this year.
As the voter registration cards start rolling out, Riemer urges people to take a closer look "and make sure it doesn't go out with the junk mail."
"People have to be on the lookout for it," he said.
A brochure accompanying the new cards was in the works before the Justice Department approved the new voter ID rules, so it does not list every new form of acceptable identification. It directs voters to the state board's website for a full list.
If by the end of the first week in October a voter has not received a new card in the mail, Riemer suggests they check their record either on the State Board of Elections website or with their local voter registration office, through which they can submit a registration application to update their record.
