Get Out and Vote

If that sample ballot, the one that identifies the polling place for today’s election, is buried somewhere amid the rubble of the other papers atop the kitchen counter, fear not.

Just by picking up the phone, voters who lost--or who never received--their sample ballots can still find out today where to go vote.

Phone lines will be open at the county registrar of voters, at the offices of the 17 city clerks in San Diego County and at the headquarters of the Democratic, Republican and H. Ross Perot campaigns, officials said Monday.

All voters need to know is their home address. The person on the other end of the phone should be able to match that to the polling place, which is probably near the voter’s home, officials said.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Call 565-5800 to reach the county registrar of voters. Voter turnout is projected to be heavy and the county registrar expects to top the 6,638 phone calls received on Election Day, 1988, the last presidential election, so officials plan to staff 40 phone lines, spokeswoman Judy Nelson said.

“We are, however, expecting to max out on the telephones,” Nelson said. “So we encourage the use of the campaigns and the city clerks.”

Democratic campaign headquarters can be reached at 496-8920. Staffers at Democratic presidential candidate Bill Clinton’s office will welcome calls, also, at 496-3950.

Republican headquarters is 571-6080. President George Bush’s campaign center, 236-1872, takes calls, too.

So does Perot headquarters: 467-7920.

Phone numbers for the various city clerks are in the white pages of the phone book, at the front of the book, under the heading “City Government Offices” on pages 4 through 7 of the “Government Pages.”

The prefix for the Chula Vista city clerk has changed. Call 561-5041 instead of the number in the phone book, Nelson said.