Nearly four months before Election Day, local candidates are already campaigning hard, jockeying for cash, support, and attention.

But judging by past years, it is still too early to expect any spike in voter registration, say officials in the 10 communities where The Sun Chroni cle circulates.

`` We haven't seen any increase,'' said Maryann Draine, the office manager for the Elections Board in Attleboro, where about 200 new voters have registered in the past 12 months.

`` But maybe it's coming,'' she added.

Massachusetts law requires that citizens register to vote at least 20 days prior to an elec tion if they want to be eligible to cast a vote. This year, the last day to reg ister before the Sept. 19 primary election is Aug. 30, while the last day to register before the Nov. 7 gen eral election is Oct. 18. Secretary of State William Galvin's office oversees all elections in Massachusetts.

Brian McNiff, his spokesman, said that Galvin `` makes a concerted effort each election cycle, as we approach the deadline for registering, to publicize that date'' through public service announcements, press conferences, and registration booths at MBTA train stations.

McNiff also said that in 2004, for the first time in Massachusetts history, the state had more than four million people registered to vote.

Some local officials also go out of their way to try and register voters, particularly young people. Tables are set up each year in high school cafeterias to sign up those who have recently turned 18.

`` This primary we probably will not see a lot of people registering,'' predicted Norton Assistant Town Clerk Anne Rodrigues. But she said she expects a surge up to the general election.

Mansfield Town Clerk Helen Christian predicted that town clerks are going to be busy from the end of August, right on through Nov. 7.

Officials agreed that public interest drives both registration and turnout.

`` If it's a hot item, you're going to see people down there,'' said Christian, who compared Mansfield's 90 percent turnout in the November 2004 presidential vote to the town's 16 percent turnout for its town selectmen election in May.

Some towns have already been busy. In both Norton and Seekonk people turned out in droves last month to defeat override proposals.

`` We had an enormous amount of people who voted,'' said Seekonk Town Clerk Jan Parker. `` It was almost near what we had for a presidential election.'' Both towns saw a significant number of new voters register in the weeks prior to the vote.

`` We saw an enormous increase for June 19,'' Parker said. `` People who had never voted wanted to get in on it.''

`` We were totally inundated,'' said Norton's Rodrigues. At least 400 new voters registered before the override vote, she said.

`` (It was) way above anything normal,'' she said. `` They were coming in droves until the deadline.''

Election officials in all 10 communities share one common goal: `` We want to see people voting. We want them voting,'' said Mansfield's Helen Christian.

`` Massachusetts has excellent election laws,'' she said, particularly compared to troubled states like Ohio and Florida.

Some of those laws have changed in recent years. Last year the state legislature changed the primary voting process.

Massachusetts allows `` unenrolled'' (formerly called `` independent'' ) voters to cast ballots in the Democratic or Republican primaries, if they wish.

Previously, an unenrolled voter needed to fill out a form declaring themselves a party member when they arrived at the polling place, and then fill out another form to return to their unenrolled status after voting.

`` It was very time consuming and costly,'' Christian said.

The new process, which was supported by the Massachusetts Clerks Association and will be used for the first time on Sept. 19, allows unenrolled voters to simply take the primary ballot they want without changing their designation.

In addition, the federal Help America Vote Act, passed in the wake of the disputed 2000 election, mandates that every city and town have one voting machine per polling place for handicapped persons to use.

But Christian said the machines have not yet arrived in Mansfield, and will not yet be available for the September primary.