California’s elections chief tackles voter misinformation ahead of Nov. 4 special election
SO WE ARE ABOUT THREE WEEKS AWAY NOW FROM AN ELECTION WHERE CALIFORNIA VOTERS WILL DECIDE WHETHER OR NOT TO CHANGE THE STATE’S CONGRESSIONAL MAPS. BUT THIS WEEK, THE SECRETARY OF STATE’S OFFICE RELEASED A MESSAGE FOR VOTERS ABOUT THE CIRCULATION OF MISINFORMATION REGARDING THE NOVEMBER 4TH ELECTION. AND JOINING US THIS MORNING IS DOCTOR SHIRLEY WEBER. TO ADDRESS THOSE CONCERNS. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE. THANKS FOR THE INVITATION. SO LET’S START HERE. IN A STATEMENT, YOU SAID THAT YOU WERE SEEING MISINFORMATION REGARDING THE BALLOT ENVELOPE. SO WHAT’S THE ISSUE? WELL, WE HAD SOME FOLKS TO NOTIFY US OR CALL US TO WONDER WHAT THOSE LITTLE HOLES WERE IN THE IN THE ENVELOPE. AND AND IMMEDIATELY WE DISCOVERED WHEN WE DISCOVERED WE HADN’T PUT OUT ANY HOLES IN AN ENVELOPE, THAT WE LOOKED IN SOCIAL MEDIA TO SEE WHERE THE MESSAGE CAME FROM. AND OBVIOUSLY, IT CAME FROM THE FACT THAT PEOPLE THOUGHT WE WERE USING THE LITTLE HOLES TO LOOK INSIDE THE ENVELOPES SO THAT PEOPLE COULD SEE HOW PEOPLE VOTED. AND AND CLEARLY THAT IS NOT WHAT IT’S ABOUT. THOSE HOLES HAVE BEEN IN THE ENVELOPE FOR MANY, MANY YEARS, AND THEY CAME INTO EXISTENCE BECAUSE WE HAVE THOSE WHO ARE VISUALLY IMPAIRED, WHO HAVE DIFFICULTY NOT ONLY JUST FIGURING OUT HOW TO OPEN THE ENVELOPE WITHOUT INJURING, WITHOUT TEARING UP SOMETHING OR BREAKING SOMETHING. BUT IF THEY WANT TO OPEN IT AND FIGURE OUT WHERE THEY SHOULD BE SIGNING THOSE KINDS OF THINGS. AND THIS GIVES THEM THE ABILITY TO DO THAT BY FEELING THE HOLES IN THE ENVELOPE, FIGURING OUT HOW TO SIGN THE ENVELOPE, HOW TO SIGN THEIR ENVELOPE AS WELL AS THEIR BALLOT, AND IN THE END GIVES THEM THE OPPORTUNITY TO VOTE WITHOUT HAVING TO HAVE SOMEONE LOOK AT THEIR SEE HOW THEY VOTED. IT GIVES THEM THE PRIVACY THAT WE’VE GUARANTEED. SO THIS CAME REALLY FROM OUR DISABILITY COMMUNITY MANY YEARS AGO. AND SO THAT’S WHY YOU SEE THOSE HOLES IN THE ENVELOPE. AND THEN SOME OTHER COUNTIES, DEPENDING ON THE OTHER CHALLENGES THEY FACE, MAY HAVE SIMILAR HOLES IN DIFFERENT SPACES BASED ON THAT, BECAUSE EVERY COUNTY REALLY PRINTS ITS OWN BALLOT, BUT THEY’RE CONSCIOUS OF THE FACT THAT THERE ARE SOME DISABILITY ISSUES THAT PEOPLE WHO ARE DISABLED WANT TO BE ABLE TO BE ABLE TO VOTE WITHOUT HAVING TO HAVE THE ASSISTANCE OF SOMEONE ELSE, OR HAVE PEOPLE LOOKING THEIR BALLOT AND SEE HOW THEY VOTED. SO THAT’S WHAT IT’S ABOUT. YOU CAN’T YOU CAN IF YOU WANT TO AND YOU THINK YOU’RE SOMETHING IS HAPPENING. YOU CAN ALWAYS MANIPULATE HOW YOU FOLD YOUR BALLOT AND PUT IT BACK IN SO THAT ONLY THE WHITE PARTS ARE SHOWING OR WHATEVER IT IS. BUT GENERALLY YOU CAN’T. I TRIED TO LOOK TO SEE IN MY BALLOT AND I COULDN’T SEE ANYTHING OTHER THAN THAT. THERE WAS A PAPER THERE, AND SO IT GIVES IT THAT, THAT SECURITY THAT, THAT, THAT THEY’RE VOTING WITHOUT HAVING HAVE OTHERS TO HELP THEM TO SEE HOW THEY VOTED. AND THAT’S WHAT IT’S ABOUT. AND IT’S BEEN IN THE ENVELOPES FOR MANY, MANY YEARS. AND SO IT’S NOT SOMETHING NEW AND INVENTIVE FOR THIS ELECTION. IT IS JUST WHAT IT IS. AND SO WE TOOK IT. WE LOOKED AT IT, SAW WHAT THE QUESTION WAS, AND IMMEDIATELY PROVIDED THAT INFORMATION TO THOSE WHO HAD REQUESTED IT. AND THEN WE PUT IT ON OUR WEBSITE TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT TOOK PLACE. AND WE PUT OUT ALSO A PRESS RELEASE FOR THE PUBLIC WILL KNOW THAT THAT’S WHAT THOSE LITTLE HOLES ARE, THAT PEOPLE ARE CIRCULATING STORIES ABOUT WHAT WE’RE DOING WITH THOSE HOLES. OKAY. REAL QUICK, I KNOW WE ONLY HAVE ABOUT 10S LEFT MAIL THEFT OBVIOUSLY MAGNIFY AT ANYTIME. THERE’S A SPECIAL ELECTION. YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR VOTERS OUT THERE RIGHT NOW WHO MIGHT BE CONCERNED IF THEY HAVEN’T SENT IN THEIR BALLOTS JUST YET? WELL, WE ALWAYS RECOMMEND, FIRST OF ALL, THAT IF YOU HAVEN’T GOTTEN YOUR BALLOT BY OCTOBER 6TH, THAT YOU SHOULD CALL YOUR REGISTRAR OF VOTERS SO THAT WE CAN CHECK IT OUT. MAKE SURE THAT AND IF NECESSARY, ISSUE ANOTHER BALLOT, BECAUSE YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO HAVE THAT. WE ALWAYS RECOMMEND THAT YOU MAKE SURE THAT YOU TURN IN YOUR BALLOT THE WAY THAT YOU FEEL MOST COMFORTABLE. PROBABLY THE SAFEST OF ALL IS OUR IS OUR IS OUR BOXES, OUR OUR BALLOT BOXES. THOSE BIG IRON THINGS THAT YOU FIND IN POST OFFICE AND AT THE REGISTRAR OF VOTERS OFFICE AND THOSE KINDS OF THINGS, AND THOSE THINGS ARE OUT THERE, AND THEY’RE OUT THERE FOR 11, 12 DAYS. AND SO YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT IF YOU REALLY FEEL INSECURE THAT YOU DO THAT, YOU COULD ALSO GO INTO THE POSTAL SERVICE AND, AND HAVE YOUR BALLOT ACCEPTED THERE AND POSTMARKED THERE. SO THOSE ARE THINGS THAT ARE THERE THAT ARE AVAILABLE. FORTUNATELY, THESE BALLOTS THAT HAVE BEEN STOLEN WERE NOT USED, WAS NOT. AND WE’RE NOT EVEN SURE WHY PEOPLE TOOK THE BALLOT, THE BALLOTS, AS WELL AS THE MAIL FOR THAT PARTICULAR SECTION. BUT IT WAS FOUND AND IT WAS HAS BEEN VERIFIED WHO THOSE PERSONS ARE, WHO HAVE WHOSE BALLOTS WERE THERE. WE WE WE WILL BE REISSUING NEW BALLOTS TODAY. AND IF YOU HAVE NOT RECEIVED YOUR BALLOT BY OCTOBER THE 6TH, WHICH IS PASSED ALREADY, MAKE SURE YOU CALL US AND LET US KNOW SO WE CAN INVESTIGATE IT AND MAKE SURE THAT WE GET YOU ANOTHER BALLOT. DOCTOR SHIRLEY WEBER, WE ALWAYS APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANKS FOR THE INVITAT
California’s elections chief tackles voter misinformation ahead of Nov. 4 special election
Updated: 12:01 PM PDT Oct 16, 2025
A special election that will ask California voters whether or not to allow California lawmakers to change the state’s congressional maps is about three weeks away.On Nov. 4, voters will be asked one question: Should Proposition 50 be passed and give lawmakers the power to redraw district lines for the 2026, 2028 and 2030 elections? Ahead of the election, Secretary of State Shirley Weber released a message for voters about the circulation of misinformation regarding the election.Weber said her office received online complaints about the holes at the bottom of the ballot envelopes.”People thought we were using the little holes to look inside the envelope and see how people voted,” Weber said.However, she said that is far from the case.“The small holes on ballot envelopes are an accessibility feature to allow sight-impaired voters to orient themselves to where they are required to sign the envelope,” Weber said.The Secretary of State’s Office says if a voter is still concerned about the privacy of their vote, ballots can be inserted into the envelope in a manner in which any markings are obscured.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —
A special election that will ask California voters whether or not to allow California lawmakers to change the state’s congressional maps is about three weeks away.
On Nov. 4, voters will be asked one question: Should Proposition 50 be passed and give lawmakers the power to redraw district lines for the 2026, 2028 and 2030 elections?
Ahead of the election, Secretary of State Shirley Weber released a message for voters about the circulation of misinformation regarding the election.
Weber said her office received online complaints about the holes at the bottom of the ballot envelopes.
“People thought we were using the little holes to look inside the envelope and see how people voted,” Weber said.
However, she said that is far from the case.
“The small holes on ballot envelopes are an accessibility feature to allow sight-impaired voters to orient themselves to where they are required to sign the envelope,” Weber said.
The Secretary of State’s Office says if a voter is still concerned about the privacy of their vote, ballots can be inserted into the envelope in a manner in which any markings are obscured.
See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel