Voter Registration Deadline: 15 days before Election Day

• Conditional voter registration is also available to eligible citizens who miss the registration deadline. For more information, visit

2020

• Primary Election Registration Deadline: Online or postmarked by February 17

• Primary Election: March 3

• General Election Registration Deadline: October 19

• General Election: November 3

• More election information at www.sos.ca.gov/elections

• Online voter registration available at registertovote.ca.gov

Students have a choice about where to register to vote.

Students attending college may register at their campus address or choose to remain registered or register at their permanent or home address.

You may only be registered and vote in one location.

California’s voter registration form asks for your California driver’s license or ID number, or the last four digits of your Social Security Number. Be sure to provide one of these numbers if you have it.

You do not need to provide an ID to vote in California. For first time voters who did not provide a driver’s license number, state-issued ID number, or the last four digits of their Social Security Number on their registration application, the Secretary of State’s office recommends bringing ID with you when you go to vote. Such ID can include, but is not limited to:

• A California driver’s license

• A California identification card

• Student ID

• U.S. passport

• A copy of a recent utility bill

• The county Voter Information Guide sent to you by your county elections office

• Another document sent to you by a government agency

Make a plan. Look up your voting site and hours at: www.sos.ca.gov/elections/polling-place

By Mail

• Any registered voter may vote by mail in California without an excuse. In most counties, to vote by mail you must fill out and sign a Vote-By-Mail Ballot Application. Applications for a mail-in ballot sent by mail must be received by your county election official no later than seven days before the election. Any time after that, you must apply in person at your county elections office to receive a vote-by-mail ballot for that election.

  • You can find a Vote-By-Mail Ballot Application in your county Voter Information Guide. A downloadable version is also available at https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/vote-by-mail/pdf/vote-by-mail-application.pdf.

  • Note: Some counties automatically mail voters their ballots before Election Day. Contact your county election officials to determine if your county employs this procedure.

• Completed vote-by-mail ballots must be returned in person by the close of polls on Election Day, or, if mailed, postmarked on or before Election Day and received within three days of the election.

Early In-Person

• Some counties permits voters to cast their ballots in person before Election Day.

• You may wish to contact your county election officials to determine if your county offers early in-person voting. Contact information for county election official is available at www.sos.ca.gov/elections/voting-resources/county-elections-offices

Election Day

• Voting sites will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day. If you are in line by the closing time, then you must be allowed to vote.

Registering to Vote Does Not Affect Your:

• Federal Financial Aid

  • Where you register to vote will not affect federal financial aid such as Pell Grants, Perkins or Stafford loans, or your dependency status for FAFSA

• Status as a Dependent on Your Parents’ Taxes

  • Being registered to vote at a different address from your parents does not prevent them from claiming you as a dependent on their taxes

• Tuition Status

  • Being deemed out-of-state for tuition purposes does not prevent you from choosing to register to vote in your campus community

Will registering to vote in California affect my driver’s license or car registration?

• Registering to vote in California does not necessarily change your driver’s license and motor vehicle registration. However, as a full–time student in California, you may have to make these changes regardless of whether you register to vote in California. For more information, you may wish to contact the California Department of Motor Vehicles.

Fair Elections Center and Campus Vote Project intend the information contained herein to be used only as a general guide. This document should not be used as a substitute for consultation with a licensed California professional.

Last updated June 2019