On Tuesday, voters will determine the fate of redistricting measure Proposition 50. But if you\u2019re eager to vote in person, you don\u2019t have to wait. You can easily pop into the polls a day early in many parts of California. <\/p>\n
Where to vote in person on Monday<\/p>\n
In Los Angeles County alone, there are 251 vote centers<\/a> that will be open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday. (They\u2019ll also be open again on Tuesday, election day, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.) At vote centers, you can vote in person, drop off your vote-by-mail ballot, or even register to vote and cast a same-day provisional ballot<\/a>, which will be counted after officials verify the registration.<\/p>\n \u201cAvoid the rush,\u201d said Dean Logan, the L.A. County registrar-recorder\/county clerk. \u201cMake a plan to vote early.\u201d <\/p>\n Also on Monday, San Diego County\u2019s 68 vote centers<\/a> are open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Orange County\u2019s 65 vote centers<\/a> from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; and Riverside County\u2019s 55 vote centers<\/a> and Ventura County\u2019s nine vote centers<\/a> between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.<\/p>\n All of those vote centers also will be open on election day Tuesday from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. <\/p>\n Other populous counties with a similar vote center system<\/a> include the counties of Santa Clara<\/a>, Alameda<\/a>, Sacramento<\/a>, Fresno<\/a>, San Mateo<\/a>, Stanislaus<\/a>, Sonoma<\/a>, Placer<\/a>, Merced<\/a>, Santa Cruz<\/a>, Marin<\/a>, Butte<\/a>, Yolo<\/a>, El Dorado<\/a>, Madera<\/a>, Kings<\/a>, Napa<\/a> and Humboldt.<\/a><\/p>\n Other counties have fewer in-person polling locations on Monday<\/p>\n San Bernardino County, however, only has six designated <\/a>early voting poll stations. They\u2019re open on Monday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and also on election day from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Otherwise, San Bernardino County residents who want to vote in person on Tuesday can go to their assigned neighborhood polling location. <\/p>\n In Santa Barbara County, if you\u2019ve lost or damaged a vote-by-mail ballot, you can request a replacement ballot<\/a> through county\u2019s elections offices in Santa Barbara, Santa Maria or Lompoc. Otherwise, voters can cast ballots<\/a> at their assigned neighborhood polls on Tuesday. <\/p>\n How to drop off your vote-by-mail ballot<\/p>\n All Californian registered voters were mailed a vote-by-mail ballot. There are various ways to drop it off \u2014 through the mail, or through a county ballot drop box or polling place.<\/p>\n Ballot drop box or polling place<\/p>\n Be sure to get your ballot into a secured drop box, or at a polling place, by 8 p.m. on Tuesday. You can look up locations of ballot drop-off boxes at the California secretary of state\u2019s<\/a> or your county registrar of voters\u2019 website (here are the links for Los Angeles<\/a>, San Diego<\/a>, Orange<\/a>, Riverside<\/a>, San Bernardino<\/a>, Ventura<\/a> and Santa Barbara<\/a> counties). <\/p>\n In L.A. County alone, there are 418 drop boxes.<\/p>\n You can drop off your ballot at any polling place or ballot drop box within California<\/a>, according to the secretary of state\u2019s office.<\/p>\n Mailing your ballot<\/p>\n You can also send your ballot through the U.S. Postal Service. No stamps are needed. Note that your ballot must be postmarked by Tuesday (and received by the county elections office within seven days). <\/p>\n But beware: Officials have warned that recent changes to the U.S. Postal Service earlier this year may result in later postmarks than you might expect. <\/p>\n In fact, state officials recently warned<\/a> that, in large swaths of California \u2014 outside of the metros of Southern California, the San Francisco Bay Area and the Sacramento area \u2014 mail that is dropped off at a mailbox or a post office on election day may not be postmarked until a day later, on Wednesday. That would render the ballot ineligible to be counted. <\/p>\n As a result, some officials are recommending that \u2014 at this point \u2014 it\u2019s better to deliver your vote-by-mail ballot through a secure drop box, a vote center or a neighborhood polling place, rather than through the Postal Service. <\/p>\n \u201cIf you can\u2019t make it to a vote center, you can go to any post office and ask at the counter for a postmark on your ballot to ensure you get credit for mailing your ballot on time,\u201d the office of Atty. Gen. Robert Bonta said<\/a>. <\/p>\n Most common reasons vote-by-mail ballots don\u2019t get counted<\/p>\n In the 2024 general election, 99% of vote-by-mail ballots were accepted. But that means about 122,000 of the ballots, out of 13.2 million returned, weren\u2019t counted in California. <\/p>\n