VOTING BY MAIL FROM FEBRUARY 4 TO FEBRUARY 26

 

HOW:            

 

Eligible registered voters may apply for a ballot to be sent to them by either of the following means:

 

·        By mail sent to Santa Cruz County Elections Department, 701 Ocean St., Room 210, Santa Cruz, CA 95060

·        By FAX (831) 454-2445, or

·        In person at the above address.

 

INFORMATION NEEDED:           

 

The following information is needed in order to process a request for a vote-by-mail ballot:

 

·        the election for which a ballot is being requested;

·        the voter’s name;

·        the address where the voter lives;

·        the address where the voter wants his/her ballot mailed (if different from the address where the voter lives);

·        the voter’s signature.

 

APPLICATION METHODS:

 

Application may be made by either of the following methods:

 

·        Complete the online application for a vote-by-mail  in English or espanol and return by FAX, mail or in person;

·        Complete the application for a vote-by-mail ballot on the back cover of the Santa Cruz County Sample Ballot & Voter’s Information Pamphlet mailed to voters by mid-February.  This method provides the County Elections Department’s return address and the voter information is bar-coded for quick processing;

·        Send or FAX a note to the Elections Department with the information required (please see above);

·        Complete an absentee ballot application provided by a political campaign. Voters have the legal right to mail or deliver the applications directly to the Santa Cruz County Elections Department rather than the political campaign.  Returning vote-by-mail ballot applications to anyone other than the elections official may case a delay that could interfere with the YOUR right to vote.

 

 

DELIVERY BY SPOUSE OR PARENT:

 

Section 3009(b) of the Elections Code allows the elections official to deliver the ballot to the applicant’s spouse or parent if the applicant is unmarried ONLY if the spouse or parent signs a statement attested to under penalty of perjury that provides the name of the applicant, his or her relationship to the applicant, and affirms that he or she is authorized by the applicant to deliver the absentee ballot.

 

PLEASE NO REQUESTS BY PHONE OR E-MAIL:

 

County elections officials are precluded by law from sending a vote-by-mail based on a telephone or e-mail request.  VOTERS MUST REQUEST A VOTE-BY-MAIL BALLOT IN WRITING.

 

WHEN:         

 

Applications may be submitted prior to February 4; however, ballots may not be obtained until February 4.  If due to special circumstances, a voter will not be able to receive a ballot during the absentee ballot period, please refer to the section on "Special Absentee Voting."

 

Ballots will be mailed to voters upon written request from February 4 to 26.

 

After February 26, voters may request a ballot under the “Late Absentee Voting” provisions. 

 

Under a new law, any voter may apply for Permanent Vote-by-Mail Voter status. 

 

RETURN:

 

Vote-by-mail ballots may be mailed by the voter to Santa Cruz County Elections Department or dropped off at any polling place in Santa Cruz County on Election Day.  Ballots may also be dropped off at the county Elections Department during business hours until 8 p.m. on Election Day, March 5, 2002.

If the voter mails his/her ballot to the county Elections Department, it must be received by 8 p.m. on Election Day, March 7.  Postmark is not acceptable.  Therefore, voters are encouraged to utilize personal delivery rather than mail during the week prior to Election Day.

A vote-by-mail voter who, because of illness or other physical disability, is unable to return the ballot, may designate on the back side of the vote-by-mail ballot return envelope, his or her spouse, child, parent, grandparent, brother or sister, or person residing in the same household to return the ballot to the Elections Department or any polling place in Santa Cruz County on election day.  (Elections Code §3017)

 

VOTE-BY-MAIL BALLOT RETURN ENVELOPE MUST BE SIGNED AND COMPLETED:

 

It is extremely important for voters to SIGN their absentee ballot return envelope and write in the address where they live in the space provided.

 

Unfortunately, if there is no signature or if the signature on the vote-by-mail return envelope does not compare to the voter’s signature on his or her voter registration card, the ballot cannot be counted.  In addition, absence of the voter’s residence address may prohibit the ballot from being counted.