Obama Camp Seeks to Turn Out Voters Via Text Message

Supporters of Barack Obama received a text message this afternoon encouraging them to register to vote.

“Obama News: Get info on how to vote at VoteforChange.com. You can get registered, apply to vote absentee or find your polling location. Fwd msg to 5 friends!” the message said.

Voter registration looks to be a key issue for Obama this fall as his campaign works to turn out young voters and college students, some of whom are voting for the first time, a vast majority of whom support him over John McCain.

The VoteforChange site, set up and run by the Obama campaign, boasts that visitors can register to vote, and either request absentee ballots or find their polling places, in about three minutes. The site uses a “share” function that lets visitors e-mail a link to friends or post it on their Facebook and MySpace pages.