Summary

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Contact

Locations

California Division of Elections
1500 11th Street, 5th Floor
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: Phone: (916) 657-2166

Web Links

• CA Elections site
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• YouTube

Registering to Vote

General Information

Who can register

To register in California you must:

• be a citizen of the United States;
• be a resident of California;
• be at least 18 years of age at the time of the next election;
• not be imprisoned or on parole for the conviction of a felony; and
• not currently be judged mentally incompetent by a court of law.

How to register

1. Use our Register to Vote form below to fill out the National Voter Registration Form.
2. Sign and date your form. This is very important!
3. Mail or hand-deliver your completed form to the address we provide.
4. Make sure you register before the voter registration deadline.

Election Day registration

If the voter registration deadline has passed, you can still conditionally register to vote and cast a provisional ballot in person at your County Elections Office at any time up to and including Election Day. Your provisional ballot will be counted when your County Elections Official verifies your voter registration.

Voting Rights restoration

If you have been convicted of a felony and have questions about whether you can register to vote, visit Restore Your Vote to determine your eligibility.

Registration status (form)

New Registration (form)

Voting

General Information

Voting as a Student

Learn more from Campus Vote Project about voting for students.

Overseas and Military Voting

You are a Military or Overseas voter if you are in uniformed services, living overseas OR a spouse or dependent of a uniformed services voter. To get registered and vote, you can utilize Overseas Vote Foundation.

If you have additional questions about elections and voting overseas you can use our state specific elections official directory or contact the Overseas Vote Foundation.

Voting with Disabilities

It is recommended that you contact your county elections official regarding whether or not curbside voting is available at your polling place. If curbside voting is available at your polling place, you may approach as near as possible to the voting area and elections officials may bring you a roster to sign, a ballot to vote, and any other voting materials you may need, whether you are actually at a curb, in a car, or otherwise located outside the polls.

Both state and federal laws require that all voters, including voters with disabilities, be able to cast their ballots privately and independently. New voting systems have been specifically designed for this purpose. Each polling place should have at least one voting system that permits voters, including those who are blind or visually impaired, to cast a ballot without assistance. In addition, the voting system must permit you to privately and independently verify your vote choices and, if there is an error, permit you to correct those choices before the ballot is cast. To find out what system your county uses, and how to use it, please visit your local board of elections.

Although new accessible voting equipment is required to enable voters with disabilities to cast a ballot privately and independently, if you want help, or if for any reason you are unable to personally mark your ballot, you may choose up to two people to help you cast your vote. However, the persons or person you choose may not be your employer or your employer’s agent, or your labor union leader or agent.

If, for any reason, your name does not appear on the list of voters at a polling place, you have the right to cast a provisional ballot. This is a ballot just like a regular ballot, but it will be placed in a special envelope and will be counted after the elections official confirms that you are eligible to vote. The official at the polling place will give you information about how to find out if your ballot was counted, and, if it was not counted, the reason why.

For more information, you can utilize the American Association of People With Disabilities (AAPD) resource.

Early Voting

California voters can vote early either in person at their county elections office, or by using the vote-by-mail system. Any registered voter may vote early instead of going to the polls on Election Day.

All valid vote-by-mail ballots are counted in every election in California, regardless of the outcome or closeness of any race.

Once your application is processed by your county elections official, your ballot will be sent to you. After you have voted, insert your ballot in the envelope provided, making sure you complete all required information on the envelope. You may return your voted vote-by-mail ballot by 1) mailing it to your county elections official; 2) returning it in person to a polling place or the elections office in your county on Election Day; or 3) authorizing a relative or person living in the same household as you to return the ballot on your behalf. Regardless of how the ballot is returned, it MUST be received by the county elections office by the time polls close at 8:00 p.m. on Election Day. Late-arriving vote-by-mail ballots will not be counted.

Vote by Mail (Absentee)

Absentee ballot rules

Any registered California voter may apply for an absentee ballot and vote by mail.

How to get Absentee ballot

1. Use our Absentee Ballot form below to prepare your application.
2. Sign and date the form. This is very important!
3. Return your completed application to your Local Election Office as soon as possible. We’ll provide the mailing address for you.
4. All Local Election Offices will accept mailed or hand-delivered forms. If it’s close to the deadline, call and see if your Local Election Office will let you fax or email the application.
5. Make sure your application is received by the deadline. Your application must actually arrive by this time — simply being postmarked by the deadline is insufficient.
6. Please contact your Local Election Office if you have any further questions about the exact process.

What to do next

Absentee ballot application deadline

• In Person: On Election Day
• By Mail: 7 days before Election Day
• Online: N/A

Absentee ballot submission deadline

Postmarked by Election Day and received within 3 days of Election Day.

Absentee Ballot (form)

Elections Alert (Form)

Poll Information

Polling Place Locator

You can find your polling place by utilizing your state’s resource.

If you have further questions on your polling place location, please contact your local elections official.

Polling Place Hours

The polls will be open from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm.

Poll Worker Information

Visit www.workelections.com to find localized information for becoming a poll worker in your area.

In order to be a poll worker in California, you must:

• Be registered to vote in California
• Be at least 18 years of age
• Be a resident of the precinct
• Complete required training
• Students who are 16 years or older may work if they are in good standing with a GPA of a 2.5 and above

You will be entitled to compensation To sign up, contact your local elections official.

Polling Place Locator
You can find your polling place here.

Polling Place Hours

The polling place hours are from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm for Primary, General and Statewide Special Elections and 8:00am to 8:00am for Regional Educational Attendance Area (REAA) elections.

Poll Worker Information

In order to be a poll worker in Alaska, you must:

• Be registered to vote in Alaska
• Be willing to work about 16 hours a day or more on Election Day, or share a position and work a split shift or attend four to five hour paid training session
• Be willing to be non-partisan on Election Day and not say any political opinions while working
• Not have any family relationships with a candidate on the ballot

To sign up, contact your local board of elections.

The Elections Division

The Secretary of State’s office comprises nearly 500 people who are dedicated to making government more transparent and accessible in the areas of elections, business, political campaigning, legislative advocacy, and historical records.

The Secretary of State’s responsibilities include:

• Serving as the state’s Chief Elections Officer
• Implementing electronic filing and Internet disclosure of campaign and lobbyist financial information
• Maintaining business filings
• Commissioning notaries public
• Operating the Safe at Home confidential address program
• Maintaining the Domestic Partners and Advance Health Care Directive Registries
• Safeguarding the State Archives
• Serving as a trustee of the California Museum

Alex Padilla

Source: Website

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla

BIOGRAPHY

Alex Padilla was sworn in as California Secretary of State on January 5, 2015. He is committed to modernizing the office, increasing voter registration and participation, and strengthening voting rights.

Padilla previously served in the California State Senate (2006-2014) where he chaired the Committee on Energy, Utilities, and Communications. As chair, he shepherded legislation to combat climate change and create a greener and more sustainable economy.  He pursued an ambitious agenda in the areas of renewable energy, energy efficiency, smart grid, and broadband deployment.

Padilla’s parents emigrated from Mexico and raised their family in the working class community of Pacoima, California.  His father worked as a short order cook and his mother cleaned houses.  Padilla attended local public schools and went on to graduate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering.  He recently completed a five-year term as a member of the MIT Corporation (Board of Trustees).  Padilla is often asked how he moved from engineering to public service. He explains that in many ways they are similar; the goal of each is solving problems.

After working for Hughes Aircraft in Southern California, Padilla participated in the Coro Fellows Program where he received leadership and public affairs training.  He would later work for U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein and then-Assemblymember Tony Cardenas.

In 1999, at the age of 26, Padilla was elected to the Los Angeles City Council to represent the same east San Fernando Valley community where he grew up.  In 2001, his colleagues elected him to the first of three terms as Council President, becoming the youngest member and the first Latino to serve in this capacity.

As Council President, Padilla provided citywide leadership at critical times. He was Acting Mayor during the tragedy of September 11, 2001.  He assisted in the interview and selection of William Bratton as Chief of Police and helped negotiate the approval of LA Live and the modernization of Los Angeles International Airport.

In 2005, Padilla was elected President of the League of California Cities.  He advocated on behalf of California cities in the State Capitol and fought to protect their budgets and advance their legislative priorities.

In 2006, Padilla was elected to the California State Senate. He was reelected in 2010.  Over the course of eight years, Padilla established a diverse and groundbreaking legislative record.

To address the growing rates of obesity and diabetes, Padilla authored the law that made California the first state in the nation to require chain restaurants to post calorie information directly on menus and menu boards.  “Menu labeling” was later included in the Affordable Care Act and is now national policy.

Padilla also authored California’s first smoke free housing law and fought to increase enforcement and penalties for the illegal sale of tobacco to minors.  He also established a sustainable funding source for pediatric trauma care throughout the state.

When he learned that thousands of cell phones were being smuggled into state prisons and used to direct criminal gang activity in our communities, Padilla led efforts to stop it.  He wrote the law that criminalized the transfer, sale, or possession of illicit cell phones in prison.  He also authored the law that prohibits violent felons from possessing, buying, or transferring body armor such as bulletproof vests.

There are approximately 1.5 million English Learners in California public schools. One in four k-12 students and about forty percent of all kindergarten students are English Learners.  Sadly, only about eleven percent of English Learners achieve English proficiency and earn reclassification each year.  Padilla authored a series of legislative measures to identify and implement best practices in English Learner curriculum and instruction statewide.  He also advocated for funding reform and accountability for schools and school districts with high concentrations of English Learner students.

Through research and legislative hearings, Padilla exposed a bottleneck in the college transfer process.  He wrote the law that streamlined the transfer process and created a clear and consistent pathway for community college students working to transfer to the California State University system.  Padilla also authored the law that requires California’s elite university athletic programs to provide alternative scholarships to student-athletes who lose their athletic scholarships due to injury.

With the potential to create 20,000 jobs, Padilla authored key legislation to facilitate the construction of a new convention center and carbon-neutral sports stadium in downtown Los Angeles.  With the goal of modernizing and better managing freight and passenger rail between San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Luis Obispo, he wrote the law to establish a joint powers authority to better govern the nation’s second busiest rail corridor.

As an engineer, Padilla is committed to the promise of science and advanced technology.  To address concerns about the misuse of genetic information, Padilla authored the California Genetic Information Non-discrimination Act.  To reduce the number of injuries and fatalities on our roads, he authored the law requiring safety and performance standards for autonomous (“driverless”) vehicles.  And, working with seismologists at CalTech, U.C. Berkeley, and the U.S. Geological Survey, Padilla authored a bill requiring the state to create a statewide Earthquake Early Warning System.

Padilla previously served as President of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO), a non-partisan organization made up of more than 6,000 federal, state, and local officials dedicated to all aspects of civic engagement.

Padilla lives with his wife Angela and their three sons in the San Fernando Valley.