"Florida was a lesson for the rest of us," Naccarato said. "And voters are more aware, too, making sure they punch the hole all the way through."

The pickers and fluffers will be the judge. "We are not anticipatingany problems with hanging chads," she insisted.

Voters can avoid the long lines by voting now under provisions of the No Excuse Absentee law passed by the Utah Legislature. As of last week, voters could can go into their county clerk's office, request a ballot, step into a voting booth and vote. And they don't have to give a reason to get the early ballot.

"I've already voted, no reason given," Naccarato said. "Of course, I had a reason for voting early. I'm busy on Election Day."

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Watch a conversation on Initiative 1 with Jake Garn and Howard Stephenson, moderated by Bruce Lindsay, tonight at 6:30 on KSL-TV.

E-mail: spang@desnews.com