San Luis Obispo County election officials are urging voters to get their ballots in as early as possible ahead of the November midterm election.
The San Luis Obispo County Elections Office says ballots are on track to be sent to all registered voters no later than Oct. 5.
San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder Elaina Cano said voters should use the time before ballots arrive to prepare.
“All the information is out there with the candidates that are on the ballot, as well as all the propositions, the state propositions, and the measures,” Cano said.
“We’re gearing up to get ready to send every one of our voters their ballots in the mail within the next couple of weeks,” Cano said.
Starting this election cycle, San Luis Obispo County voters will have a new option for returning their ballots.
“They will be able to take their voted vote-by-mail ballot and place it in the ballot box without their envelope to be counted on election night,” Cano said.
Voters using this option will still need to check in with the clerk and must go to their assigned polling place, which will be printed at the top of vote-by-mail ballots.
“If they walk into a polling location and they’re not in that poll book, they won’t be able to do that,” Cano said.
Cano says the new option is possible because of new electronic poll-book technology, which allows election workers to see a voter’s status in near real-time, including whether their mail ballot has already been returned.
Some local voters say they are just learning about the new option but may consider using it this election.
“I think that the more avenues people have to be able to vote, they should make those available,” Atascadero resident Cole Estrada said.
“That will just actually expand how many people are getting their votes in, I think,” San Luis Obispo resident Kaatje Matthews said.
Election Day is Nov. 3. You can click here to check your voter registration status.
To follow the progress of a mailed-in ballot, you can use this ballot tracker provided by the California Secretary of State, and receive alerts when it has been processed and received.