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The term “ballot harvesting” is all over the news after the California Republican Party admitted to placing "unofficial" ballot drop boxes in a number of counties around the state. 

Elections officials say it is illegal, but Republicans argue the drop boxes are a legal form of ballot collection.

Kim Alexander, president and founder of the California Voter Foundation, said ballot harvesting is also known as “third party ballot return” and it allows a designated person to deliver a voter’s ballot for them. The process isn’t new but how it’s conducted and what is allowed has changed over the years.

Prior to 2013, a voter had to be ill or disabled for someone else to return their ballot for them. Plus, that person had to be a family member or a member of the same household.

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The unofficial ballot drop box controversy isn’t the only reason U.S. voters are anxious. People also have questions about mail-in voting, such as how to know if they signed in the right place, and whether their signatures will be recognized.

Kim Alexander, president of California Voter Foundation, says to make sure your ballot signature looks like the one on your driver’s license. 

“If there is a problem with your signature … it doesn’t happen a lot, but it is one of the leading reasons ballots get rejected. Before your ballot would be rejected, your county has to contact you and provide you with a chance to submit a new signature,” Alexander says. “So this is a good reason to sign up for ballot tracking because you will get notified immediately if there is a problem with your ballot or your signature."

But people can end up making all sorts of mistakes. 

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When the ballots arrived in Susan Lambert’s mailbox earlier this week, everyone in the house was accounted for. There was one for her, one for her husband, and two for her adult step-sons.

And then there was the one for George.

Lambert, a playwright, producer and writer who lives in Pasadena, didn’t recognize the name. There wasn’t a George among her neighbors, nor was it the name of the prior owner of the home, which she bought 13 years ago.

Lambert’s husband shrugged and chucked the extra ballot in the recycling. 

More than 21 million ballots are now in various stages of transit across California. They are in mail trucks and mail boxes. Some are sitting on kitchen tables unopened and others have already been filled out and shipped back to county election offices.

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President Donald Trump last week again brought into question the integrity of the upcoming election by suggesting, without evidence, that voters could engage in fraud at polling places. 

“Go into the polls and watch very carefully,” Trump said at the first presidential debate against Democratic nominee Joe Biden. Since the debate, Trump and his campaign have continued calls for poll watchers, calling on an “Army for Trump.” 

Although every registered California voter will receive a mail-in ballot this week, most counties will still offer physical polling locations for those who want to cast a ballot in person. For those who want to, state law allows the public to observe many aspects of the election process — from preparation of voting equipment to the canvass of the vote after Election Day.