You have a chance to make history on February 5.
You have a voice in the Democratic Primary.
Connecticut has a closed primary voting sytem,
meaning only those voters registered as Democrats on February 5 can vote in the primary.
There are a large number of unaffiliated (sometimes incorrectly called independent) voters in Connecticut.
Here's the Connecticut rule for those unaffiliated voters who wish to vote for a candidate in the primary on February 5:
In order to vote, unaffiliated voters must affiliate with a party, which they can do in person until noon on Monday, February 4, at their local registrar of voters (often found in the local town hall or municipal building in each community).
This means you can switch from unaffiliated to Democrat until next Monday and vote in Tuesday's primary for the candidate of your choice.
Those voters who wish to switch from unaffiliated to Republican fall under the same rule.
People can also switch from unaffiliated to affiliate with a party by mail but the deadline for that possibility is past (the mail-in card needed to be postmarked January 31).
UPDATE 1 - I just realized that today is January 30, so you still have time to mail in a registration card changing your affiliation if you are now unaffiliated. That said, time is short, and I wouldn't trust the mail and the registrar's office to process your change in time for Tuesday's vote. If you want to change, you should go in person to the local registrar's office instead of mailing in a card.
So, if you are unaffiliated, you can go to your local town hall or municipal building and find the registrar of voters office. You will fill out a card, changing your affiliation to Democrat.
Then you can vote for your candidate.
If you don't know what your affiliation status is, you can find out by calling or visiting your local registrar of voters.
If you wish to unaffiliate again, you can do so by mail or in person after the primary, putting you once again in the unaffiliated category for the general election.
You cannot switch parties (from Democrat to Republican or vice-versa) before this primary in order to vote. The deadline for is past.
Too many CT voters think they don't have a chance to vote in this primary. I hope some of you will consider affiliating in order to vote this coming February 5.
Your vote is going to count this election in a way it has not for the most recent, front-loaded presidential elections.
As an Obama supporter, of course I hope you affiliate to vote for Barack Obama. But, whomever your candidate, I encourage you to make your voice heard.
You have a chance to make history. Don't miss that chance.
UPDATE 2 - Here is a link to a story in this afternoon's Hartford Courant on-line about the strong voter turnout expected in Connecticut this coming Tuesday -
Connecticut officials believe turnout in Tuesday's presidential primary could reach or exceed the record 43 percent turnout seen in the 2006 Senate race.
Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz says more than 24,000 people have registered to vote since Nov. 1. More than 11,000 are Democrats and nearly 5,000 registered Republican.
Bysiewicz says more than 8,000 unaffiliated voters have registered since Nov. 1. Unaffiliated voters have until Monday to choose a party if they want to vote in a primary.