From Clark County Elections Office:

November 4, 2008 general election - mail ballots now available

Ballots for the November 4 general election are now available at the Clark County Elections Department, 1408 Franklin Street, Vancouver. Election Department office hours are from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Additionally, the Clark County Elections Department will be open on both Saturday, October 18 and Saturday, November 1, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mail ballots will be sent to all eligible registered voters. If a voter does not receive their mail ballot by Tuesday, October 21, they should contact the Elections Department by calling (360) 397-2345 and request a replacement ballot. Replacement ballots can be requested in person, by mail or by telephone. Our mailing address is Elections Department, P.O. Box 8815, Vancouver, WA 98666-8815.

On Tuesday, November 4, Election Day, at 5 p.m., the process of entering the scanned ballot information into the ballot tabulation system will begin. No reports of election results will be printed until after 8 p.m., Election Day. Election results will be released to the public and news media at Gaiser Hall, Clark College at or before 8:30 p.m. Election results will also be available on the County Auditor’s Web site at http://clarkvotes.org. A sample ballot for this election is currently available at this Web site address.

Your ballot will be in your mail box any day now.  Here is a PDF sample of the ballot.  Watch for it and please vote.

From Kay Ellison of Vancouver for Peace:

Hi all!

We are excited about the upcoming Vancouver Peace and Justice Fair on Saturday, September 13th at Esther Short Park! We hope you are planning to come!

How can you help and be part of this cool day? There are 3 main ways:

1. If you are part of a group that works for peace and justice, why not ask them to participate in the fair? Perhaps you have already signed up. There are over 40 groups already signed up who will be there with tables and information about their groups! See who has already signed up by looking at the website under the tab: Reserve a Space. The form to send in can be printed from our website www.vancouverpeaceandjusticefair.org

2. Volunteer to help on the day of the fair. We need people to be at the headquarters table, at the children’s area, put up and take down sandwich board signs, “traffic” directors, the Vancouver for Peace table, and even as reenactors of people of peace. Contact Kay Ellison with the times you are interested in doing any of this. We need help a few people at a time from 7:30-6:30.

3. Last, we need posters put up all over town! We have some colored 11 x 17 posters already, and also have where you can download and print posters on our website: 11 x 17, letter size, and small ones that are 4 to a page. See our website www.vancouverpeaceandjusticefair.org to print a poster!

Looking forward to hearing from you, and seeing you at the fair ! Kay Ellison

Dr. David Carrier

Meet

David Carrier

Democrat for State Senate

17th Legislative District

www.davidcarrier.org

Sunday July 27th, 4:00-6:00 pm

Hosted by Bob & Dona Dingethal

Special guest: Senator Craig Pridemore

Join us for live music, wine and cheese!

17811 NW 56th Ave., Ridgefield

please RSVP to: david@davidcarrier.org

Discuss ideas for:

§ Affordable housing

§ Energy independence

§ Affordable health care

§ Prioritize education funding

§ Transportation and infrastructure

§ Renewable energy and climate change

§ Sustainable economic growth and opportunity

Meet David Carrier

Democrat for State Senate

17th Legislative District

www.davidcarrier.org

Please join us:

Sunday July 13, 4:00-6:00 pm

Hosted by Alicia Munoz

2519 SE 133rd Ave., Vancouver

Please join us for beer and brats!

RSVP- please call Marina at 360-213-7597

Discuss ideas for:

§ Affordable housing

§ Health care partnership

§ Climate change and conservation

§ Energy independence and security

§ Sustainable economic growth and opportunity

August 5th, 7PM at Fort Vancouver Library

Burgerville

What is the purpose of the August primary?

In the August primary, voters select the candidates who will run for office in the general election.

What is a Top Two Primary?

• In each race, the two candidates with the most votes will advance to the General Election. It is possible that both candidates who advance to the General Election prefer the same party.
• Voters do not have to pick a party. They can cast their vote for anyone who is running in a given race.

Will all the parties be represented in the Top Two primary?

In a top two primary, all candidates running for each office are listed without being supported, nominated or endorsed by a political party. Each candidate for partisan office may use any party’s designation after his/her name on the ballot, but that is strictly the candidate’s preference. A party designation does not imply that the candidate is nominated or endorsed by the party or that the party approves of or associates with that candidate.

What is the difference between a blanket primary and a Top Two primary?

In a blanket primary, candidates in each political party receiving the highest number of votes are qualified to run in the general election, thus ensuring that minor parties are represented. In the Top Two primary, only the top two vote getters run in the general election, and they might state the same party preference.

What offices are subject to the Top Two Primary rules?

The August 19 Washington State Top Two Primary rules apply to partisan candidates running for local, state and other federal offices. Included are races for the House of Representatives, the State Legislature, partisan statewide offices such as Governor and partisan county offices. The partisan offices of President and Vice President of the United States are not subject to Top Ten Primary rules. The August Top Two Primary pamphlets and ballots will reflect the candidate’s name and party preference. The party preference, however, does not imply that the candidate is endorsed, nominated, associated with, or approved of by that party. The top two vote getters for each partisan office will advance to the November 4 general election.

Nonpartisan postions do not fall under the Top Two Primary rules. For instance, the state judges, who are nonpartisan, are also running in the August Primary. If a judicial candidate is unopposed or receives more than 50% of the vote in the primary, s/he is elected to hold office.

For more information on the Top Two primary, go to Washington’s Secretary of State website.