By Rita Howell

Today is the last day to register to vote in the November 4 presidential election. The ballot that day will also include senatorial and congressional races, judgeships, and local election commissioners and North Panola school trustee positions.

The offices of Panola County Circuit Clerk Joe Reid will be open until 5 p.m. Registrants should bring with them a driver’s license or social security number.

The upcoming election has generated interest and created a backlog of registration forms in the office, where deputy clerk Heather Brewer is busy entering the new voters into the county’s computerized rolls.

“We had 485 registered since September 1,” Brewer said on Wednesday. That total does not count several stacks of registration forms filed this week and not yet entered into the computer system. Brewer said she would catch up with the new registrants after today’s deadline.

Presidential candidates appearing on the ballot will be: Republican John McCain, Democrat Barack Obama, Constitution party candidate Chuck Baldwin, Libertarian Bob Barr, Green Party candidate Cynthia McKinney, Independent Ralph Nader and Reform candidateTed Weill.

Republican Thad Cochran and Democrat Erik R. Fleming face each other in one senate race, and Democrat Ronnie Musgrove and Republican Roger Wicker are contending for Mississippi’s other senate seat.

For Mississippi’s 1st Congressional District, candidates are Travis Childers, Democrat; Greg Davis, Republican; Wally Pang of Batesville, Independent; and John M. Wages Jr., Green Party.

The race for northern district state supreme court justice (Position 1) is between Gene Barton and Ann Hannaford Lamar. Running for Position 2 are David Chandler and Charles “Chuck” Easley.

In the race for circuit court judge for District 17, Position 2, Jimmy McClure and Smith Murphey are the candidates.

Candidates for election commissioner for Panola County’s District 1 are Teresa Wallace, Joseph L. Wesley and Dorothy Kerney-Wilbourn.

Julius Harris is the only candidate on the ballot for election Ccommissioner for District 2 and Jimmy Herron is the only candidate for District 3. In District 4, election commissioner candidates are Bonnie G. Land and Jerry G. Perkins.  For District 5, the only candidate is Ronald “Runt” McMinn.

For the North Panola School District  1-A trustee seat, candidates are Heather Barlow and Pearl McGlothian.

For the North Panola 4D Trustee seat, candidates are John Clark Hudson, Patsy L. Jackson and Lydia Still Smith.