Today is the deadline to register for the November election.

"I'm embarrassed to say, this is my first time — and I'm 30," Galvez said. "I kind of procrastinated before now. I never knew where you were supposed to register."

Galvez signed up at Wal-Mart, where a coalition pushing for Colorado to renew the Earned Income Tax Credit for low-income wage-earners launched an 11th-hour voter-registration drive.

The EITC Coaltion targeted people for whom a little tax savings can make a big difference.

The federal EITC returns an average of about $1,200 to low-income households. But Colorado, which would return about $120 per year, dropped the program in 2001 because of limitations with the Taxpayer Bill of Rights.

If $120 doesn't seem like much, consider that many low-income families said it saved them from missing a utility payment, or paid for the kids' back-to-school clothes, or for a crucial auto repair, said Adele Flores-Brennan policy analyst for the non-profit Colorado Fiscal Policy Institute

Income is a fairly strong predictor of whether a person will vote, studies show.

The U.S. Census Bureau found that in 2004, about two-thirds of Americans between 25 and 44 who earned less than $30,000 did not vote in the presidential election. By contrast, a little more than a quarter of those earning more than $75,000 a year did not vote.

Voting is more prevalent among older Americans of all income groups, but there was still a big gap in the 45-to-64 age group. Among those earning less than $30,000 a year, about half did not vote in 2004. Among those earning more than $75,000 a year, about one in seven did not vote.

Since many low-income people move frequently, they are more likely to not be registered in their new neighborhoods, and, so, ineligible to vote unless they re-register.

James Johnson, civic engagement director for the Colorado Progressive Coalition, said politicians primarily listen to the squeaky wheel that votes. "If you register and make the Earned Income Tax Credit important to you, it becomes important to politicians."

Johnson and other members of the EITC Coalition said a person's vote is his voice, and if enough people from a certain demographic believe that, they collectively can make a big difference.

The EITC Coalition was on a pace to sign up about 100 new voters by late Monday evening, said Jesse Ulibarri, group spokesman.

When Galvez was asked whether he felt empowered by registering, he said:

"Once I actually go and vote I will. That will make much more of a difference than just registering. This is just the first step."