SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Voters across California had until Feb. 25 to request their vote-by-mail ballot and have it mailed to their homes before election day.
If they missed the deadline, they can head to their county office, voting center or polling place, and still vote in person or take home a replacement ballot.
Officials can give a registered voter a vote-by-mail ballot on the spot regardless of when you go. If voters have already cast their ballot, they can receive alerts as to where their ballot is in the counting process by signing up with the California Secretary of State's new feature, "Where's My Ballot?"
California voters should refer to their local county election's office to find where the location is for their voter's polling location. In addition, here are some key things to keep in mind with vote-by-mail ballots.
Reminders for if you want to mail it in
Voters do not need to include a stamp this year when mailing in their ballots. A new law went into effect in 2019 that allows people to mail in their ballots without a stamp. The last day to mail in the ballot is Election Day. If the ballot is not postmarked on election day, it does not count.
Voters also should remember to fill in the outside of the mail-in ballot envelope to authorize the ballot. If that section is not filled in, the ballot may be returned to the voter.
If voters mail in their ballot, they cannot head to the polls and vote again. In 2016, Sacramento county had 95 people who turned in a vote by mail ballot and then tried to vote in person.
Voting twice is illegal in the state of California. Janna Haynes, a spokesperson with the Sacramento County Elections Office, said when election officials find someone has tried to vote twice, they have to report the incident to the Secretary of State whether it was intentional or a mistake.
Dropping off your ballot
For most counties, voters can drop it off at the county office, voting center or wait until Election Day to drop it off at the nearest polling location.
If you want to drop off your ballot, then remember to turn it in before 8 p.m. Anyone can drop off any voters ballot as long as they are not getting paid to do so, and the ballot is authorized.
Sacramento, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Yolo, El Dorado and Nevada counties offer multiple places where people can go to drop off the mail-in ballot.
Sacramento County
Locations labeled with a red-letter icon are where voters in Sacramento County can drop off the vote-by-mail ballot. Blue markers are voting centers that opened Saturday, Feb. 22. Orange markers are locations that open Saturday, Feb. 29.
San Joaquin county
Locations, where voters in San Joaquin County can drop off their mail-in ballot, are indicated with a red-letter icon.
Stanislaus County
Locations, where voters can drop off mail-in ballots in Stanislaus County, are indicated with a red-letter icon.
Yolo County
Locations, where voters can drop off mail-in ballots in Yolo County, are indicated with a red-letter icon.
El Dorado County
Locations, where voters can drop off mail-in ballots in El Dorado County, are indicated with a red-letter icon. Voter centers that opened Saturday, Feb 22, are indicated with a blue marker, while centers that open Saturday, Feb. 29, are indicated with an orange marker.
Nevada County
Locations, where voters can drop off mail-in ballots in Nevada County, are indicated with a red-letter icon. Vote centers that open on Saturday, Feb. 29, are shown with an orange marker.
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