It will cost some money, but county commissioners in Nash and Edgecombe counties would do local voters a world of good by approving an effort to send out postcards advising each voter of redistricting changes.

Similar to other states, North Carolina will settle into new districts this year for the U.S. House, N.C. House and N.C. Senate. But the upcoming election will be a little disorienting, considering how much districts have changed under the new Republican leadership of the N.C. General Assembly.

For instance, Nash County residents at the moment are represented in Congress by U.S. Reps. G.K. Butterfield, D-1st District; Renee Ellmers, R-2nd District; or Walter Jones, R-3rd District. That stands to change dramatically when voters go to the polls in May.

Nash County residents now fall into District 1 or District 13. Butterfield continues to represent the 1st District, but the 13th District will be a whole new ball game. U.S. Rep. Brad Miller, a Democrat, has been the representative for the 13th District, but the new districting plan has placed his residence in the 4th District, represented by longtime U.S. Rep. David Price.

That leaves the 13th District wide open for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is a whole new set of voters in Nash County who have never been part of the district before. Is your home part of the newly drawn district? That’s where a postcard from the Nash County Board of Elections would be a big help.

Voters could use a heads-up to see if their district is changing. The same holds true for newly drawn districts for the N.C. Senate and N.C. House. Add in the fact that some of the new districts split precincts, and you have a recipe for voter confusion in 2012.

As Telegram staff writer Darla Slipke reported last week, Nash County elections officials already have begun updating their registries with the new districts in mind. Using that information to inform voters of the new changes would make their jobs easier on Election Day.

Here’s hoping county commissioners in Nash and Edgecombe will take heed. Voting should be as simple as possible.