By now, registered voters should have received their ballot booklets in the mail. Absentee voters are receiving their ballots. They serve as important reminders to vote in the June 3 primary, which is now just three weeks away. If you're not registered, it's not too late. You can register through May 19.

Voter registration forms are available online at www.sccvote.org. Just click the "Register to Vote" link on the left, then click the "Download the registration form from this web site" link halfway down the page that appears. Complete the form - it's a simple questionnaire with just eight questions and should only take a few minutes to complete - and mail it today to Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters, P.O. Box 1147, San Jose, CA 95108.

Forms are as readily available as information on the election issues

If you don't have Internet access, registration forms are also available at city and county offices, public libraries, post offices and the Department of Motor Vehicles. If you need help registering to vote, call the county registrar's office at 299-VOTE for assistance. You can study the issues and candidates by reading your local newspaper, by reading candidate statements and campaign literature, and by visiting smartvoter.org, a nonpartisan web site that presents candidate and voter information online. Smart Voter can also help you find your polling places and can tell you exactly which candidates and issues will appear on your ballot based on your address.

Of 21 democratic nations, the

U.S ranks 20th in voter turnout

With the excitement of the presidential primary behind us and the intensity of the general election yet to come, experts are predicting low voter turnout for the June 3 election. That's really an American tragedy, because the primary duty of any American citizen is to study the candidates and issues and vote. Voting is the premise and the promise of democracy. To the degree that citizens don't vote - and Americans consistently post one of the lowest voter turnout rates among democratic nations - their elected officials know that they are not being monitored by their bosses, the electorate.

FairVote.org reports that "the U.S. is 20th out of 21 in voter turnout among established democracies - only Switzerland has lower voter turnout than turnout in U.S. presidential elections."

Wouldn't it be nice to prove the experts wrong this June 3? Register, study and vote.