California Online Voter Guide, November 2024

California Presidential General Election

November 5, 2024
(34th edition)

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About This Election

What's on the ballot:  

  • Presidential candidates representing six California-qualified political parties
  • The office of U.S. Senate will have TWO separate contests on the ballot. You may vote on both. The first contest is the regular election for the full 6-year term of office beginning 1/3/25. The second contest is a "special vacancy election" for the remainder of the term ending on 1/3/25 
  • U.S. House of Representatives, State Assembly and odd-numbered State Senate districts
  • Ten statewide propositions
  • Local contests for county, municipal and special district offices, judges and local measures 
  • California registered voters receive in the mail a ballot and return envelope, a state voter information guide and a county voter information guide. Information about the candidates and measures on your ballot is provided in the two guides. It is up to candidates, not election officials, to decide whether to place a statement in the voter guide. 

2024 IN-PERSON VOTING OPTIONS
BY COUNTY

Your voting choices:

  • All six state-qualified political parties have a candidate for president on the California ballot. You can vote for any candidate, regardless of party.
  • The top two Primary Election vote-getters in legislative and congressional contests will compete against each other in the General Election, and in some cases are members of the same political party. You can vote for any candidate, regardless of party.
  • Local contests are nonpartisan; in Primary contests where no candidate received a majority of the vote, the top two vote-getters compete against each other in the General Election.  
  • All federal, state and local political district lines were redrawn after the 2020 Census to ensure Californians are equally represented. Visit CalMatters to look up your state and federal districts.

 

Important Dates:

  • September 21:   Deadline for counties to mail ballots to military and overseas voters
  • October 7:   Counties must begin mailing vote-by-mail ballots to all registered voters; first day of early voting; all voters may vote in county election offices during business hours
  • October 8:  Ballot drop-off locations open in Voter's Choice Act counties
  • October 21:  Last day to register to vote in time to receive a ballot in the mail
  • October 22 - November 5:  Conditional, "same day" voter registration available at all voting sites and county election offices
  • October 26:  11-day vote centers open in Voter's Choice Act counties
  • November 2:  4-day vote centers open in Voter's Choice Act counties
  • November 5:  Election Day - polling places and vote centers are open statewide 7 am - 8 pm; most but not all drop-off locations are open til 8 pm; ballot returned via US Mail must be postmarked on or before Nov. 5 and received by Nov. 12 to be counted. 
  • December 5:  Last day for counties to certify county election results
  • December 7:  Last day for the Secretary of State to certify presidential election results
  • December 13: Last day for the Secretary of State to certify state election results
  • December 17: Electoral College meets and casts final Presidential election votes to be sent to Congress 

Resources

From the California Voter Foundation:

CVF Vote by Mail tips
 

From the California Secretary of State:

From the California Attorney General:

CVF recommends these additional nonpartisan voter resources:

Archived editions of CVF's California Online Voter Guide: