Washington state is to become the first in the US to allow voter registration via a Facebook app, reports say.
State officials said the app, which could be available next week, was a "natural way" to sign up voters.
Facebook would not collect details other than the voter's name and date of birth, and would not have access to the voter database, the state said.
The move comes as several states have introduced or passed laws requiring more evidence to register or vote.
Correspondents say voter registration could stay in the spotlight in the run-up to the presidential election on 6 November.
Washington state, in the US Pacific Northwest, has offered online voter registration since 2008. Overall, more than a dozen states allow voters to sign up online.
But officials in Olympia, the state capital, have decided that more needs to be done to encourage the people of the state to sign up to vote.
"In this age of social media and more people going online for services, this is a natural way to introduce people to online registration and leverage the power of friends on Facebook to get more people registered," co-director of elections Shane Hamlin told the Associated Press.
Registration scuffles
The Facebook app was developed by Microsoft and has been in planning since last autumn, according to reports.
"We are excited that citizens in Washington state will be able to register to vote and review useful voting information on Facebook," Facebook spokesman Andrew Noyes told AP.
The app is to appear on the Facebook page of Washington Secretary of State Sam Reed. Users can "like" the service and recommend it to their friends.
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