California Voting Requirements & Information
U.S. Vote Foundation’s California Voting Requirements and Information directory informs you of California voting rules and options. It focuses on California-specific voting guidelines and information for all voters, including domestic, overseas, and military voters. Here you can find out about California voter eligibility, voter ID requirements, registration, absentee and early voting options, ways to transmit voting documents and links to specific-California voting tools. It's an all-in-one California voting resource.
General Information
Registration
You can register to vote or update your registration information:
- online
- by mail
- in person at your elections office
- at some public assistance offices and motor vehicle offices
- at public libraries
- at polling locations on Election Day
All registered voters will receive mail-in ballots. If you register to vote within 29 days of an election, 5 days after you register an election official will mail you your ballot.
People who are unhoused can still register and vote. In the "home address" section of the registration form, homeless voters can describe where they spend most of their time, including cross streets and landmarks.
Election Day Voting
Polling places are open from 7am to 8pm on Election Day. You can return a mail ballot in person to any polling place or drop box within the state as well as at the office of your county elections official. Note that certain elections, such as stand-alone municipal elections, are conducted entirely by-mail.
Find my polling place
Early Voting
Any registered voter can go to a county elections office in person to receive a vote-by-mail ballot to vote prior to and on Election Day, but you will also have a mail-in ballot sent to you starting 29 days before the election. Some counties also offer in-person voting at vote centers and other locations before Election Day. You may also drop your ballot in any voting drop box/drop location in the state. New drop boxes have been added at UC and CSU campuses in 2022.
Absentee Voting
California offers permanent vote-by-mail status for any registered voter.
Please visit the US Vote Disability Voting Guide to see accommodations for the registration and voting process.
Eligibility Requirements
You are eligible to vote in California if you:
- Are a U.S. citizen
- Are a resident of California
- Are at least 18 years old by Election Day
You are NOT eligible to vote in California if:
- You are in prison for a felony conviction.
- A judge has specifically ruled that you are not able to vote.
You can vote if you are currently incarcerated serving a felony jail sentence, and were not sentenced to prison time.
Restorative Requirements
- If you have completed a felony prison sentence, even if you are still on parole or probation, then you are immediately eligible to register to vote.
You may preregister to vote in California
- At the age 16
If you are a student, you are eligible to vote in California if:
- You reside in California but are attending college in another state
- You reside in another state but attend college in California
Identification Requirements
Voter Registration
To register to vote in California you should provide:
- Your California Driver's License or State non-driver ID Number
- Last Four Digits of your Social Security Number
If you are registering to vote for the first time by mail, you will need to provide a copy of a valid ID. Acceptable forms of ID include:
- Valid Photo ID
- Utility Bill, Bank Statement, Government Check, or Paycheck that Shows your current name and address
- Government Issued Document that shows your current name and address
You can alternatively show one of these documents when you vote to complete your registration.
Voting In-Person
If you registered to vote in California, you may be required to present valid photo ID if you are voting for the first time or your registration is incomplete. You can use any ID from this list:
- Valid US Passport
- Insurance Plan ID Card
- Public Housing ID Card
- Health Club ID Card
- Valid Employee ID
- Valid California Driver's License
- Valid Student ID
- Out of State Driver's License or Non-driver ID
- Valid Military ID
- Debit or Credit Card
- Valid California Issued ID
- Valid Commercial ID
If you don't have any of these ID's, please look at the list of alternative ID's in California.
If you do not have an ID from the above list, in California additional, acceptable forms of ID include:
- Public Transportation Authority Senior Discounted Fare ID Card
- Certificate of Vehicle Ownership
- Discharge Certificates, Pardons or other Similar Documents Issued to you by a Government Agency
- Lease or rental statement or agreement Issued by a Government Agency
- Government Check
- Sample Ballot mailed to you
- Voter notification or confirmation card
- Current Utility Bill
- ID Issued by a Government Disability Agency
- Insurance Plan or Discount Drug Plan Card Issued by a Government Agency
- Property Tax Statement
- A Government Issued Document that shows your Current Name and Address
- Bank Statement
- Other Official Elections Document
- Valid California Vehicle Registration
- University Tuition Bill Issued by a Government Agency
- Identification Documents Issued by Government Homeless Shelters or Other Facilities
- Government Paycheck
- Drug prescription Issued by a Government Doctor or Health Care Provider
Your ID documents must show your Current Name and Address and be no older than the Date of the last Election.
Voter Materials Transmission Options
Domestic Voter |
In-Person |
|
Fax |
|
Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voter Registration | |||||
| Absentee Ballot Request | |||||
| Blank Ballot To Voter | |||||
| Voted-Absentee Ballot Return |
State Lookup Tools – Am I Registered?
State Elections Website
Where is my Polling Place?
Where is my Ballot?
Can I Register to Vote Online?
Am I Registered?
Where is my Ballot Drop Box?
Where are my Early Voting Locations?
State Voter Registration FAQ
Overseas / Military Voter Information
Has my Ballot Been Counted?
Where is my Overseas or Military Ballot?
Eligibility Requirements
Overseas Voters
U.S. citizens living abroad have the right to vote as absentee voters, provided they are eligible to vote in their state. If you are living outside of the U.S. permanently, indefinitely, or temporarily, your voting rights stay with you, even if you never voted when you lived in the U.S. To vote from overseas:
- Complete and send an overseas voter registration/ballot request form to your election office in the U.S. This is one specific form that will register you as an overseas voter and request your absentee ballot – simultaneously.
Many states allow children who were born overseas, but never lived in the U.S., to use their U.S. parents’ last residence address to register.
Military Voters
Service members and their eligible family members living outside their voting jurisdiction (within or outside the U.S.) are able to vote as absentee voters.
- If you are a service member, or an eligible family member, there is a single form to file for both voter registration and ballot request. It is often called the “Federal Post Card Application” or the FPCA form. This form must be re-filed with your election office each time you change location.
To vote as a service member or eligible family member:
- Complete and send a voter registration/ballot request form “FPCA” to your election office in the U.S. It is the same form in all states.
Identification Requirements
Voting Overseas
U.S. citizens living overseas may register and request a ballot using the overseas voter registration/ballot request form. You will have the following identification options when completing the form:
- Last 4 Digits of your Social Security Number
- U.S. State or Territory or District Issued ID
- Option to Indicate that you do not have the Requested ID
Voting Military
Service members and their dependents may register and request a ballot using the federal voter registration/ballot request form ("FPCA"). You will have the following identification options when completing the form:
- Last 4 Digits of your Social Security Number
- U.S. State or Territory or District Issued ID
- Option to Indicate that you do not have the Requested ID
Voter Materials Transmission Options
Overseas Voter |
In-Person |
|
Fax |
|
Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voter Registration | |||||
| Absentee Ballot Request | |||||
| Blank Ballot To Voter | |||||
| Voted-Absentee Ballot Return |
Military Voter |
In-Person |
|
Fax |
|
Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voter Registration | |||||
| Absentee Ballot Request | |||||
| Blank Ballot To Voter | |||||
| Voted-Absentee Ballot Return |