Just over a quarter of those voters who are voting by mail in the June 6, 2006 Primary Election have returned their ballots, and Election Day is only a few days away.

At this late date, voters should plan on hand delivering their ballot to either the Santa Cruz County Clerk/Elections Department or one of the City Clerk's offices in Capitola, Santa Cruz, Scotts Valley or Watsonville or to drop their ballot off at any of the 159 polling places in Santa Cruz County on Election Day, Tuesday, June 6.

At the Santa Cruz County Government Center, there is a white mailbox-style container in front of the government center where voters may drive-up and drop off their ballots without having to leave their cars.

Voters should be aware of the strict laws governing return of their voted absentee ballot. The law prohibits any absent voter’s ballot to be returned by any paid or volunteer worker of any campaign. Any person who receives a voted ballot in violation of the law is punishable by a fine and/or imprisonment.

The law does, however, allow a voter, who because of illness or other disability, to authorize certain relatives or a household member to return the ballot for them. In the six days prior to the election, the law further allows any person authorized in writing by the voter to pick up his or her ballot and return the voted ballot on behalf of the voter.

Both the Santa Cruz County Clerk/Elections Department, 701 Ocean St., Room 210 in Santa Cruz and Watsonville City Hall, 250 Main St., in Watsonville, will be open this Saturday and Sunday, June 3 and 4, for weekend voting from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. On Monday, the day before Election Day, the Santa Cruz County Elections Department and the Watsonville City Clerk’s Early Voting Center at City Hall will be open during regular office hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for voting or dropping off ballots. On Election Day, the County Elections Department and Watsonville City Hall will be open during regular polling hours from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Late absentee voting, from May 31 through June 6, is authorized for persons who are ill, disabled or will be absent from their precinct on Election Day.

Santa Cruz County election officials remind voters who are returning their vote-by-mail ballots that they must sign the declaration on the outside of the envelope. Unfortunately, if there is no signature or if the signature on the vote-by-mail ballot return envelope does not compare to the voter's signature on his or her voter's registration card, election officials cannot count the ballot.