Matt Gentry | The Roanoke Times

Scotty Minns, a senior at Radford University from Williamsburg, on the college's 'voter bus' after casting his ballot at the Radford Recreation Center.

Today's Election news

• Breaking news from across the region

As voter registration has soared in the New River Valley's largest college towns so has confusion, causing local registrars to wonder about the possibility of students voting twice today.

In Radford, registration increased 11 percent since January, while Blacksburg registrations have increased a whopping 52 percent. Most new registrations have been in precincts that cover the Radford University and Virginia Tech campuses.

Two weeks ago, a Tech student inquired at Montgomery County Registrar Randy Wertz's office about receiving an absentee ballot from Maryland and a local voter card at the same time. Someone at a voter registration drive had given her incorrect information resulting in a dual registration, Wertz said.

This was not an isolated event, Wertz said. Other Tech students have in recent days sought advice about being registered in more than one place. Wertz said he wonders how many newly registered residents don't understand that and might, as a result, vote more than once. By law, you may be registered to vote in only one place at any time.

While Virginia's voting system safeguards against state residents casting two ballots, there is no national voter registration database to help ferret out voters registered in more than one state. "It's definitely a concern" and Virginia officials have heard of dual registrations occurring, State Board of Elections spokeswoman Susan Pollard said.

But there is accountability, she said, because all states report their voter lists and results to the federal government following elections. Any suspected cases of dual voting in Virginia will be referred to the state police for investigation, Pollard said.

Casting ballots in two places is a felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison and up to a $2,500 fine.

-- Tonia Moxley