Online Voter Registration: Arlington Registrar Expects 'Positive Impact'

By Sharon McLoone and Jason Spencer

The State Board of Elections and the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles together have launched online voter registration.

Beginning Tuesday, eligible Virginia residents can submit a voter registration application or update their registration information online.

Residents must provide their Virginia DMV customer identifier number, which is displayed on state-issued identification cards or driver’s licenses. Residents who do not have a Virginia DMV customer identifier may complete the registration application online, but will be required to print and return the completed form to their local voter registration office, according to the State Board of Elections.

All voter registration application submissions are subject to review and approval by a local general registrar. Residents will be notified directly by the local voter registration office by mail once an application has been processed.

Voters will be mailed a new or updated voter registration card when the appropriate general registrar accepts the application or update. 

"I think it will ultimately have a really, good positive impact for us," Arlington County Registrar Linda Lindberg told Patch.

On one hand, Lindberg's office will receive applications electronically, reducing the chance for errors in data entry. Also, the new system provides more of a "sure thing" for people who register to vote at the DMV.

"One of our biggest problems on Election Day is voters who believe they registered to vote at the DMV and there's just no record of their registration," Lindberg said.

Previously, if someone wanted to register to vote at the DMV, they would've been handed a form that had to be signed and returned, which the DMV would then put in a stack to mail to the state. The state would sort through the paperwork and mail the forms back to individual voter registration offices.

"There's so many potential points of failure there," Lindberg said.

Under the new system, if the DMV has a person's signature on file electronically, the voter registration application can be emailed directly to the appropriate voter registration office.

"We're talking about big savings" in terms of time and chances for human error, Lindberg said. "We registrars are very excited about this."

Additional information is available on the State Board of Elections website.

Do you plan to use this service? Should Virginians be allowed to vote online? Tell us in the comments.