PAGE 18, WEDNESDAY JANUARY 9, 1980, WHITBY FREE PRESS Notices of Enumeration in mail Over 15 million cards - called 'Notices of Enumeration' - will go into the mails to Canadian voters this January. The massive mailing is a key procedure in preparing for the 32nd federal general election to be held on February 18. The cards will be mailed no later than January 11. They will go out to all those whose names were on the final, official voters' list that was used in the last general election on May 22, 1979. The card will confirm that the voters' name appears on the list of electors for the polling division in which he or she was ordinarily residing at the time of the May 22nd, 1979 general elec- tion. It will identify the voter's electoral district, polling division number, the location of the polling station and the date and hours of voting. This is a change from the usual procedure of com- piling the preliminary voters' list. The list in past election was prepared as a result of a door-to-door can- vass by enunerators, then was revised into an official list. There will be no enumeration for this elec- tion. In other respects, the process for this election will not differ in any major way. An eligible voter who does not receive an enumeration card in the mail can still get his or her name on the revised, official voters' list. But the voter must take the necessary action to get on the revised list. A person who is eligible to vote but does not receive a card should contact the returning officer of his or her electoral district after January 15 and before February 4. Those voters who have changed their place of or- dinary residence since May 22, 1979 should note that the notice of enumeration card will be sent to their former address, confirming that their name is on the voters' list to vote at the local polling station where they were living at that time. Therefore, if a person has moved since the last general election, he or she must con- tact the returning officer of the electoral district where they are nbw residing during the revision period in order to have their name place on the lists and be able to vote. The telephone nunber of each returning officer will appear in Elections Canada advertisemtns in local newspapers, or can be ob- tained by calling the local telephone directory assistance number. Special emphasis will be placed on revising the preliminary lists for this election, according to the Chief Electoral Officer, Jean-Marc Hamel. "Although the preliminary lists we are using are only six months old, we expect to make revisions to 12 to 13 per cent of the names on the lists," Hamel said. "This will result from changes of residence, marriages, deaths and so on." To allow for this extra ef- fort and to give eligible voters adequae opportunity to get their names on the final lists, the period of revision has been extended to nine days for urban voters instead of the usual. three days. Revision will take place from January 25 to February 4, inclusive (Sun- days excepted). The revising process in rural areas will extend from January 7 to January 30, in- clusive. However, in a rural polling division, if your name is not on the voters' list on polling day, you can still be "vouched" for by a voter whose name is on the list for your polling division. The returning officer will explain to a voter how to have a name of an eligible elector added to the boters' list, or have a name deleted, or corrected. your dwelling, and keep it presentable, FOR YOUR MISTAKES while you're at workM MT or When you bringin a roll of film to be processed, we charge you ONLY FOR THE PR INTS THAT COME OUT whenever 'We'll also be there to give you friendly, professional advi ce (if you want it) and show you where you made your mistake. 668-3611 M.B.M.- The Friendly Professionals M.BDM. PHOTOGRAPHY 131 BROCK STREET NORTH WHITBY 668-6111 'Serving the Mon, Wed, 9 - bThurs, Fri,9-8;Sat30 - 5 Durham Area" In an urban polling division, a revising officer is appointed by the senior district judge. The revising officer will hold public sit- tings from Jafuary 25- to February 4, when ap- plications are received for changes to the preliminary voters' list. In a rural polling division, revision will be done by an appointee of the returning officer. Revising agents also are appointed by the returning offiver of an urban electoral district. The revising agents will visit any place in the electoral district at the request of the elector to complete the applications of individuals whose names are not on the preliminary list. At the time an elector completes his or her ap- plication to be placed on the revised list, he or she will be informed of the location of his or her polling place. To be eligible to vote in the general election, a person must be 18 years of age or over by polling day -- Feburary 18 -- must be a Canadian citizen and an or- dinary resident of the polling division on December 31, 1979. In the last federal general election of May 22, 1979, there were 15,156,252 names on the official list of voters. The revised list will possibly affect 1.8 to 1.9 million people. "This is why we are em- phasizing the revision process", Hamel, the Chief Electoral Officer, said. "We are not only extending the period of revision, we are also increasing our infor- mation program so that all voters will know that this process is available to them." Hamel said that the decision not to carry out enumeration was not a mat- ter of cost, since the "savings" would be offset by the greater effort and resources being placed on revision and on the infor- mation program. "The decision not to enumerate arose from logistical problems," he said. The substantial numbers of forms and printed material, about one million kilograms (two million pounds) in all, could not be moved, mailed and delivered to all 282 ele2toral districts in time to carry out enumeration for a February election. This resulted in part from the time of year -- the heavy mail loads of the holiday season. "Although the mechanics of preparing the voters' list are changed slightly, the spirit of the law and the basic process are intact and unchanged", Hamel said. "The objective has been and stili is to give every eligible person the maximum oppor- tunity to exercise the right to vote." DIAL -N-INSPIRATION Dial 668-1331 and hear a three minute inspirational message by Pastor Emmo Oltmanns of the Emmanuelchurch at 401 Rossland RoadW. in Whitby.