Election '08: Know Your Voting Rights

The Democratic nomination battle is down to 10 contests. This election cycle has been a dream for voting rights activists. From coast-to-coast, Americans have registered and turned out to vote in record numbers. To their credit, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have motivated millions of new voters to participate in the electoral process.

African Americans and young voters have fueled Obama's lead in the popular vote and pledged delegate count. According to the Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning & Engagement, youth turnout has tripled or quadrupled in some states. Young voters' influence extends beyond the polling booth as they persuade their mama (and poppa) to vote for Obama.At the same time, the primary election season has been a nightmare. In appearances before the House Administration Committee, representatives of the Election Protection Coalition, including Tom Joyner, host of "The Tom Joyner Morning Show," and Greg Moore of the NAACP National Voter Fund, testified about voting irregularities in the presidential primaries and caucuses.

To date, nearly 70,000 voters have reported problems. Joyner testified:

Depending on the state you're in the reason for the delay is that there aren't enough machines, there isn't enough manpower, there aren't enough I.D. verification machines or they have run out of ballots. You want to wait in line until the problems are fixed but if you do, there's no way that you will make it to work on time.

Thomas Jefferson said: "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance." During my recent visit to the National Civil Rights Museum, I was reminded of the role that Freedom Schools played in educating black Mississippians about the voting process. A copy of "Freedom Primer No. 2: The Freedom Vote and the Right to Vote (1964)" is on display.

Museum visitors are invited to spin a wheel to see whether they would get a chance to register to vote. With millions of new and infrequent voters expected to show up in November, it must not be left to chance whether their vote will be counted. Voter education must remain a priority lest history repeats itself.