Stand Up and Be Counted : Impressive voter registration efforts show promising early results

Democracy depends on a participating citizenry. The opportunity to make a difference at the ballot box appears to be attracting more interest this year despite widespread skepticism and feelings of disenfranchisement.

Voter registration efforts in Los Angeles appear to be making an impressive difference. This is due in part to a grass-roots campaign to engage those who aren’t registered--estimated at one-third of the 5.5 million county residents who are eligible to vote.

Times staff writer Timothy Williams reported that registration workers say that thousands of new voters are being attracted to the political process. Contributing factors are the Los Angeles riots, the presidential election campaign and rising frustration over elected officials.

The deadline for registration is Oct. 5, so the numbers of new voters will not be reflected on the county registrar’s rolls until mid-October.

Meanwhile, volunteers from various organizations are braving the heat and manning posts across the county to sign up voters. Their efforts range from setting up tables at shopping centers to more sophisticated programs such as that of Latino Vote ‘92, which is using private-sector data to identify neighborhoods with large numbers of Latino potential voters. Latino Vote ’92 is trying to increase the low registration level among Latinos to reflect that group’s actual population.

Other groups, including the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project, are taking a personal approach, going door to door. Korean-Americans have undertaken an aggressive registration effort. Groups representing various minorities are enthusiastically recruiting young voters.

These diverse efforts are providing easier access to registration materials, which otherwise are available only at government buildings and public libraries or by contacting the registrar of voters.

The real test will come in November when it’s time for the new voters to exercise their right to cast ballots. Will they? Or will they succumb to apathy and pass up the polls? Making a difference at the ballot box requires making an appearance there.