Voter Registration and
Vote-by-Mail Drives
Voter Registration:
Candidates and/or committees
wishing to distribute voter registration cards may obtain cards in English or
English/Spanish from the Elections Department during regular office hours.
For any quantity of 50 or more, the individual requesting the
cards must fill out an application and obtain a "Guide to Registering Voters"
from elections staff in the Elections Department. For quantities of 2,000 or more, the
distribution form is transmitted to the Secretary of State's Office. (California
Administrative Code §20001g)
Citizens or organizations which distribute voter registration
cards shall give a voter registration card to any person requesting it.
Completed cards must be returned to the Elections Department
within 3 business days or by the close of registration. Failure to do so is a misdemeanor.
October 10, 2000 is the last date to register to vote in
the November 7, 2000 general election. (The actual deadline is October 9, but since it is
a holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day)
Vote-by-Mail Ballots: Any organization or citizen wishing
to distribute more than 10 absentee applications may obtain camera-ready copy of a
state-approved, uniform application and have the application printed in any quantity.
Camera-ready forms are available in English and Spanish. The
Elections Department also provides a guide on how to duplicate the form. It is extremely
important that candidates and/or committees adhere to the format and to include the
committee’s name, address and telephone number at the bottom of the vote-by-mail
application. (Elections Code §3006 and 3007)
Any individual, organization, or group that distributes absentee
voter applications shall return the forms to the appropriate elections official within 36
hours of receiving the completed form, or before the deadline for application, whichever
is sooner. (Elections Code §3008)
October 10, 2000 is the first day absent voter ballots
may be issued for the November 7, 2000 election. Any application received prior to that
date will be kept on file and processed during the application period.
A written request/application sent by mail for an absent voter
ballot must be received by the Elections Department by 5 p.m. on October 29, 2000. Ballots
are available at the Elections Department from November 1 to November 7 upon filing a Late
Absentee Ballot application.
Applications for absentee ballots received in the mail
after October 29 will not be processed. A letter of explanation will be sent to
the applicant advising the voter that the application was received after the deadline.
