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Who Can Register To Vote In California?
California residents over the age of 18 can visit the California State online voter registration page. There are options for registering to vote in Spanish, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese and more. Voters can also register in person at their county elections office or pick up a paper registration from your local library, DMV office, or U.S. Post Office. Residents aged 16 and 17 can pre-register to vote; once they turn 18, they can cast a ballot.
What Do I Need To Register?
Residents will need to provide their full name, birthday, and last four digits of their social security number. Applicants with a California Identification card or driver's license will be asked to input their information.
What If I Don’t Have An Identification Card?
California residents who do not have a state identification card or driver’s license will have to print out or request to be mailed a paper form after completing a conditional registration. The form must be signed and sent back to their county’s election office. Your signature will then be added to the voter registration record.
What If You Aren't Living In California?
California residents living abroad, stationed overseas in the military, or temporarily residing outside of the state can register to vote online and request an absentee ballot.
What Are The Voter Registration Deadlines?
This year’s California voter registration deadline is Oct. 24. If registering online, the application must be completed by midnight. Even if the application was started prior to the deadline, any online application submitted after the deadline will not be accepted. Registrations through the mail must be postmarked by Oct. 24 to be accepted.
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How Will I Get A Vote-By-Mail Ballot?
Under a new state law, all active, registered voters will receive a mail-in ballot in early October (Active means you’ve participated in recent elections). Counties must send those out by Oct. 10 and they are expected to arrive a few days later, though some counties may send theirs out earlier.
Voters can also contact their county elections office to become a permanent vote-by-mail voter. That will ensure they receive a mail-in ballot for all future elections.
What Happens If My Vote-By-Mail Ballot Is Lost Or Stolen?
You can request a second vote-by-mail ballot if your original is lost, stolen or destroyed. Contact your county elections office to be sent another ballot. Counties are able to "cancel out" lost or stolen ballots using a statewide voter registration database called VoteCal, according to Kim Alexander of the California Voter Foundation. (Full Story)