Some voters wait until the last minute to register - WLOX.com - The News for South Mississippi

Some voters wait until the last minute to register

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By Michelle Lady - bio | email

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HARRISON COUNTY, MS (WLOX) -

There was a steady flow of people at the Harrison County Circuit Clerk's Office Saturday making sure to get their registration stamped to be eligible to vote in the presidential election.

Shellie O'Keefe brought in her daughters' registration forms.

"Our other three children, our boys, are registered and voting so this is a real day in history for us," O'Keefe said.

This will be the first election where her entire family will be casting a ballot and she gets a little chocked up thinking about how proud that would make her dad.

"My father, Judge Simski, really, really believed in the law and he had taught us from day one how important it was and that it's your right as a citizen and that you should take that right and run with it," O'Keefe said.

That is exactly what DaShawn Hamilton is doing, he just turned 18 a few months ago and will be exercising his right to vote the first chance he can.

"Make a difference. If you think the economy is bad, vote. Who knows, maybe you can change it," Hamilton said.

Hamilton is one of more than 3,000 new voters who has registered in Harrison County in the past month.

Deputy Circuit Clerk Connie Ladner said, "It's comparable to how busy we were four years ago. We registered 5,000 new voters at that time and we are on track to register that many this time."

This election is inspiring some voters to head to the polls that never have before, Ladner says they registered a 98-year-old woman and a 101-year-old woman in the past few weeks.

"This is a very important election, who is president it affects everyone," Ladner said.

"We love America and we are glad we are here. And if you have ever lived abroad or ever visited abroad, you would kiss the soil when you came back," O'Keefe said.

Besides voting for the president of the United States, there are also congressional seats up for grabs. The election is November 6th and the polls will be open from 7am until 7pm.

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