In brief: Voter registration deadlines are here

Washington residents who are eligible to vote but haven’t registered have until today to mail their registration forms and until Monday to register online if they want to vote in the Nov. 8 general election.

Post offices will be closed Monday for Columbus Day, so if mail-in registrations aren’t postmarked today, they won’t be postmarked until after Monday’s deadline.

It will be possible to register online through Monday by going to the secretary of state’s website, www.myvote.wa.gov. Residents can register in person at a county elections office until Oct. 31.

Jim Camden

Many absentee ballot requests ineligible

Almost one-third of the absentee ballot requests received so far by the Kootenai County elections office come from addresses outside any city or fire district with a contested race.

As a result, elections workers will mail postcards to those voters telling them they are ineligible to vote in the Nov. 8 election.

Kootenai County Clerk Cliff Hayes said in a news release Friday that 1,500 requests for absentee ballots have been received so far, 469 of which were from ineligible voters.

Voters who aren’t sure of their eligibility can check www.kcgov.us/elections/ search. Elections workers can check eligibility immediately for people who request absentee ballots in person.

Voters whose addresses have changed can re-register and, beginning Oct. 17, can obtain their absentee ballots at the same time.

The ballots for city and fire district races are posted on the county’s website at www.kcgov.us/elections/ sample/2011_City-Fire/.

Alison Boggs

EWU enrollment up for third straight year

For the third consecutive year, Eastern Washington University’s enrollment is up.

Fall enrollment surpassed the 12,000-student mark for the first time in school history, said Dave Meany, university spokesman. The increase is more than 5 percent, or 600 students, compared with last year.

“The record student body comes as the state is poised to once again cut funding to higher education, which will present more challenges for the university and its students,” Meany said.

Traditionally, half of Eastern’s students are the first in their families to earn a college degree. About 90 percent of the students are Washington residents.

Jody Lawrence-Turner