The calendar is about to get busy with 37 days until Christmas. It’s hard to believe but Thanksgiving is next week and before you know it, we’ll be toasting a new year and welcoming in 2016.

But between now and then, there’s an important thing you need to do. If you aren’t registered to vote, please do so as soon as possible.

Just like the holidays, election season is here too. Local voters will go to the polls March 1 to decide the course of the country and county.

Why not go ahead and register now so you are ready to have your voice heard next spring?

While voters will elect the next President of the United States and our delegation to Washington, there are also local elections that have a direct impact on your life.

Among those local contests include the county commission, school board, district attorney and several judges.

We’ve written before that Selma should never have an issue with voter participation and turnout. If anybody anywhere knows the price paid for the right for everyone to have a voice in government, we know that here.

You can register to vote by visiting the Board of Registrars office in the Dallas County Courthouse on Lauderdale Street. The board’s phone number is (334) 874-2534.

A form and more information about voting can also be found online at Secretary of State John Merrill’s website alabamavotes.gov.