ST. LOUIS — Tuesday marks four weeks until Election Day. If you live in Missouri and haven't registered to vote yet, you'd want to hurry. You have until Wednesday, October 9th to register to vote.
If you're already registered, experts say you'll want to make sure the process goes as smooth as possible.
"Everybody deserves to have a seat at the table,” said Denise Lieberman with the Missouri Voter Protection Coalition. She wants to ensure Missourians register to vote by this week’s deadline and then take advantage of the opportunity to vote on Election Day.
Since long lines are expected, Lieberman reminds early voting is an option. No excuse absentee voting opens in Missouri on October 22nd.
Either way, Lieberman recommends knowing what's on your ballot before you show up
"There are a lot of items on the ballot and each one of them are really important. A lot of us think ‘Well, I wanna go vote for President’ but keep in mind that what's on your ballot will also determine who's gonna represent you in the state legislature, what your constitutional rights are going to be here in Missouri and what judges are gonna be sitting on the bench,” she said.
Over at Saint Louis University, the Center for Social Action is mobilizing students to vote.
“Try to make it as easy as possible. Eliminate the barriers,” said Director Dr. Bobby Wassel.
There are voter registration applications in his office and resources to help young voters make informed decisions.
"Young people, I think have the biggest voice because it's their future that's on the line that gets decided by who's in office, what policies get made and what policies get passed. So they should have the biggest voice and so we're trying to really amplify that,” he said. “We do know that younger voters maybe don't vote at the same rate that older voters do, but we're trying to change that mentality.”
Regardless of your age, in order to make that voice heard, you have to make sure you're good to go.
"It's a really good time to check your voter registration because if you haven't voted in a while or if you've moved, it's possible that your name has been removed from the rolls,” Lieberman said.
In Missouri, you can check your registration status here.
If you live in St. Louis or St. Louis County, you can show up to any precinct to cast your vote. You will need a photo I.D. all over Missouri.
If you're in Illinois, you can register to vote anytime, even on Election Day.