People urged to register for Lisbon

The Referendum Commission today launched a campaign urging people who are not on the register of voters to claim their vote before the October 2nd referendum on the Lisbon treaty.

The Commission is calling on people to check the electoral register and, if needed, to use the late registration facility which is available up to September 15th.

Details on how to do this can be obtained at www.lisbontreaty2009.ie. The Commission's website explains how to check the register, become registered, or implement a change of address before the referendum vote.

The Referendum Commission is also beginning an online advertising campaign today that feature on eight websites including Bebo, Facebook, entertainment.ie, daft.ie and rent.ie.

According to the body, the advertising is targeted at younger voters - who are most likely not to be registered or to be registered at the wrong address.

This week also saw the Commission start the distrubution of a summary of the Lisbon treaty to 1.9 million homes this week, and a full public information campaign will start in a week's time.

Referendum Commission chairman Mr Justice Frank Clarke said: "Many thousands of people who are eligible to vote in this referendum are currently prevented from doing so simply because they are not registered, or are registered at the wrong address.

"You are entitled to vote in the referendum on the Lisbon Treaty if you are an Irish citizen, you are aged 18 or over, you are living in Ireland and you are on the electoral register."

There are just over three million people registered to vote in the upcoming Lisbon referendum.

Those who are not registered can download a form from www.lisbontreaty2009.ie. This must be signed and witnessed at a Garda station and then posted to the relevant local authority. This completed form must be with the local authority on or before September 15th.

Forms are also available at Garda stations, public libraries, local authority offices and post offices.

According to the Commission, some 72,000 people added their names to the register between January 1st this year and the local and European Parliament elections. Around 18,000 did so before the Lisbon Treaty Referendum of June 2008.

The Referendum Commission is an independent body, set up by the Referendum Act 1998 as amended by the Referendum Act 2001. When a referendum is to be held, a Commission is set up at the discretion of the Minister for the Environment and Local Government.

Once the Commission completes its functions, it presents a report to the Minister, within six months, and the Commission then dissolves one month after the submission of that report.

Pro-Lisbon youth campaign, Generation Yes have welcomed the Referendum Commission's action. They are reminding young people they may register at their new addresses if the move, or have moved, to attend college.

Details on the Referendum Commission's campaign can be found at http://www.lisbontreaty2009.ie/