Voters who have disengaged with politics in Northern Ireland are to be targeted in the last annual electoral registration drive.
The Electoral Commission today revealed its advertising campaign would focus on the message: "Secure your vote or lose your voice".
The campaign will try to convince more young people, members of ethnic minorities, people with disabilities and those living in deprived areas to cast their vote.
Registration forms will also be made available in universities, colleges, workplaces, shopping centres and on the Internet.
Seamus Magee, head of the commission's office in Northern Ireland, said: "The new theme will communicate a simple message: if you don't register to vote, you won't have a say on the issues that affect you.
"It is vital that people register during this final annual canvass by completing their registration form and returning it without delay."
In July, the Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act removed the requirement for an annual voter registration process, replacing it after this year with a system of continuous registration.
Voters who register will in future only have to re-register if their personal details change.
However to ensure voter information is up to date, the Act has given Northern Ireland's new Chief Electoral Officer Douglas Bain the power to cross-reference data on the register with information held by other public bodies.
The annual registration process was unpopular with politicians, especially Sinn Féin whose vice president Pat Doherty who claimed it caused confusion among the electorate and amounted to the shredding from the list of 100,000 voters.
Electoral chiefs have also been alarmed at the fall in voter turnout in recent elections. Last year's General Election recorded a drop of almost 12 per cent on 2001's figures, with the 12 largest decreases in voter turnout in the UK occurring in Northern Ireland constituencies.
PA