What is Smart Voter? Will it help me in my candidacy?

Smart Voter has received glowing feedback from voters who have used our site in previous elections. They find that they like getting a list of their complete ballot choices, anytime they want to see it. By "drilling down", they can find information on candidates and ballot measures organized in an efficient manner.

A very large percentage of our users visit on Monday before Election Day and on that Tuesday. They don't have time to wade through information that does not help them decide for whom to vote. That's one reason they appreciate our Web site.

By filling out our simple web forms, you will raise your visibility in the community. And Smart Voter costs you only time -- not money.

I already have a Web site. Why should I take the time to fill in the Smart Voter form?

We encourage you to link to your Smart Voter web page from your Web site.

Several voters in the last election said they would not vote for a candidate who did not respond to Smart Voter.

How do I create my Smart Voter Web page?

If you are a candidate running for an office in one of the counties fully participating in our project, you are invited by letter to submit information about yourself and your candidacy.

The letter your receive should be accompanied by a page of instructions telling you where to go on this website to fill out the form. For privacy reasons, we do not publish the name of the candidate form page here. If you believe you are eligible to submit information to Smart Voter but do not have your instruction sheet, please go to the page below and contact the Smart Voter coordinator.

• Tennessee

What information may I enter on my Web page?

Every candidate, regardless of office sought, is asked to fill out the same form. We ask for:

• campaign contact information (required)
  
• biographical highlights (minimum of 2 required)
  
• top three priorities (required)
  
• endorsements (optional)
  
• political philosophy (optional)
  
• position papers (optional, maximum of three)
  
• photograph (optional)
  

Only information about you, the candidate, should be entered. Do not enter information referring to your opponent. As your election official says, do not make any false, slanderous, or libelous statements.

May I enter as much as I'd like?

Word limits apply and vary for each section. Limits only apply for those fields that are seen directly on your main Smart Voter page. With the limits, you can be assured that you are producing a page that can be quickly read by voters to pick out the major points of your philosophy, background, and priorities.

We allow virtually unlimited space on the extended sections. You may give a full biography, expound on your political philosophy, and list your endorsers. And you have the opportunity to enter three position papers, each of virtually unlimited content.

We urge you to utilize your free Smart Voter page in a way that serves both the surge of voters who come to our site on Election Day and the day before and those who want to read every word you write.

What are the limits?

For those boxes beginning with a bullet: 120 characters are generally permitted. If you attempt to enter more than 120 characters (about 2 lines) into the box on the form, you simply won't be able to type another character. Just back up in the form and edit.

Position Paper Summary: 200 characters are allowed for the short summary of each unlimited length position paper on a subject of your choice. If you enter more than this, you will be told, after you press the "go" button below this area, that you have exceeded the limit. Just press your browser's "back" button and edit the summary area.

After I create my page, how long will it take before it is available to the public?

1. Your page is checked by one of our volunteers to see that the required elements are present. When OK, the Smart Voter system is told that the page should be activated during the next automatic cycle. This process could happen very quickly or take a few days. In the midst of the heavy election season, the volunteers check their queues at least once a day.

2. The page must be generated by our automatic program. This runs at least overnight, but during a heavy election season about four times a day.

3. After a good percentage of candidates have entered their data, we will open the election in your county to the public. Normally, an election is made available about one month before election day.

I sent you a photo -- how long before I should see it published?

If you emailed a message with the digital photo or instructions on how to find it online, it should take about 2 days. The photo properties must meet our specifications -- or pretty close to it.

Photos cannot be moved to the Smart Voter Web site until one day after you have created your web page.

I'd like to change some information on my page. Can I do that?

Yes, the data you enter for your page is your responsibility and may be changed at any time. You may do so until 24 hours before the polls close on election day (eg. Monday, 8:00 pm).

In what order do you list the candidates for a race?