Totoro, that "married name" thing is a problem in our state, too. It seems that the only people having problems getting a driver's license (even renewed!) because they can't prove citizenship are married women who gave up their maiden names! It's not going over at all well.
Steph, I know that some people don't vote out of laziness, but also there has been an active campaign atmosphere over the last few decades that is purposely designed to cause voter apathy. One of the main goals of negative campaigning is to make people as sick and tired of the guy doing the smearing as they are of the guy who is being smeared. It's a result of studies that showed that people react to the ugliness by not going to the polls. I swear to goodness, there are times that I feel like I could just run away from it, and not bother. But it's too important.
Luckily, I have TiVo, so I don't have to listen to the ads in order to watch my favorite programs. I just zip right through. We vote by mail here, which means you can vote weeks in advance or take your ballot to a polling place until the polls close. Still, our rate isn't much over 45% in the best of times. It's really a sad statement of what people's priorities are. We are only as strong as the people who voted. Every voter who stays home on election day weakens us by not caring enough to be heard.