Get to Know Your Voter Rights, As Early In-Person Voting Begins in Some California Counties

Many vote centers are set to open this weekend in participating California counties, thanks to the Voters Choice Act.

So, now is the perfect time to brush up on your voter eligibility — and what can and can't happen at your polling place or vote center.

According to the office of California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber, Ph.D., all California voters are protected by a list of 10 basic rights:

1. The right to vote if you are a registered voter.
2. The right to vote if you are a registered voter even if your name is not on the list.
3. The right to vote if you are still in line when the polls close.
4. The right to cast a secret ballot without anyone bothering you or telling you how to vote.
5. The right to get a new ballot if you have made a mistake.
6. The right to get help casting your ballot from anyone you choose, except from your employer or union representative.
7. The right to drop off your completed vote-by-mail ballot at any polling place in California.
8. The right to get election materials in a language other than English if enough people in your voting precinct speak that language.
9. The right to ask questions to elections officials about election procedures and watch the election process.  If the person you ask cannot answer your questions, they must send you to the right person for an answer.  If you are disruptive, they can stop answering you.
10. The right to report any illegal or fraudulent election activity to an elections official or the Secretary of State’s office.

Because the intricacies of election laws can be difficult to understand, and the information can even be out of reach, many voters don't even try to cast their ballot — some because of the fear that it won't count anyway.

And unfortunately, there are some parties out there who don't want people — or, certain people — to vote.

So before you assume you'll be turned away, or that the ballot you cast will be rejected, take a closer look at the California Voter Bill of Rights — which applies no matter which California city or county you live in.

1. The Right to Vote If You Are a Registered Voter

You are eligible to vote if you are all of the following:

• a U.S. citizen living in California
• at least 18 years old
• registered where you currently live
• not currently serving a state or federal prison term for the conviction of a felony
• not currently found mentally incompetent to vote by a court.

If you missed the voter registration deadline (which passed on October 24, 2022), it's not too late. As part of the state's Same-Day Voter Registration program, you can conditionally register to vote in this upcoming election from October 25 to November 8.

Not sure if you're registered to vote already? Want to check if your voter registration is updated with your current address? You can check your current voter status online. You'll need either a California driver license or identification card (DL/ID) number, or the last four digits of your social security number. But for best results, enter both your DL/ID and last four digits of your social security number.

2. The Right to Vote If You Are a Registered Voter Even If Your Name Is Not on the List

There are a number of reasons why your name might not appear on the official list of registered voters that poll workers have wherever you go to cast your ballot in person. It might be a simple clerical error or the result of a computer or printer glitch. It might be because you haven't registered to vote yet — but are eligible to register the same day as you vote. You might've moved and forgot to update your address with your local registrar.

You will vote using a provisional ballot — which is just a regular ballot that is placed in a special envelope prior to being put in the ballot box. If elections officials determine that you are indeed eligible to vote provisionally, and that you haven't already voted in some other way (like with a mail-in ballot), your provisional ballot will be counted.

According to the California Secretary of State, who oversees all elections, you also have the right to find out from your county elections official if your ballot was counted and, if not, the reason why it was not counted. This is part of the statewide California Elections Code, as detailed in sections 3017 and 3019.5, as well as federal law.

You can check the status of your provisional ballot online or by calling your local county elections office.

It's worth mentioning that this isn't a new policy in California. It's actually taken place since 1984 in order to ensure that no properly registered voter is denied their right to cast a ballot and that no voter votes twice, either intentionally or inadvertently, in a given election.

And if election workers turn you away or won't give you a provisional ballot, you can call the ACLU's Election Protection Hotline at 1-866-OUR-VOTE or 1-888-VE-Y-VOTA (en Español) and report the experience to your local county election officials.

3. The Right to Vote If You Are Still in Line When the Polls Close

Even though vote-by-mail policies and early in-person voting has opened up more opportunities for voters to cast their ballots outside the traditional operating hours of polling places on Election Day, there are still circumstances in which some voters can't make it to the polls until late in the evening on Election Night.

In California, in-person polling places are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. If you arrive anytime before 8 p.m. and get in line — even if the line is very long — you should be allowed to vote, as long as you can stay in line.

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Note that your employer, no matter whether they're private or public, is obligated to give you time off to vote. However, some employers may require advance notice for any additional time off that you need for voting and may require that it be taken at the beginning or the end of your shift.

Staff shortages in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic have hit every industry — and poll workers are no exception. That means extended wait times may be possible at your local polling place or vote center on Election Day, which is why voters are being encouraged to vote early and, if possible, by mail.

4. The Right to Cast a Secret Ballot

Some voters may have a disability that affects their ability to read, while other voters may have difficulty reading or writing (in English, or at all). If you need any kind of help while voting — with using the voting machine or reading or marking your ballot — you may ask a poll worker for assistance, and they are obligated to help you.

However, you have the right to receive help without being bothered for any reason and without anyone telling you how to vote (or who to vote for) or asking you to tell them how you plan to vote.

Additionally, no one is allowed to harass you for speaking or reading another language or for any other reason at all.

And finally, in areas where paper ballots are used, you get to place it in a locked box yourself

5. The Right to Get a New Ballot If You Have Made a Mistake

That's right — some California voters could get a "do-over"!

If you're filling out your ballot in person at a polling place or vote center, and you realize you've made a mistake, you can ask a poll work for a new ballot. Here's the catch: It's only if you haven't already dropped your paper ballot in the box or submitted your ballot electronically. Once your ballot is "cast," you can't change your vote.

If you're voting by mail, you can exchange your "spoiled" vote-by-mail ballot (whether you've made a mistake and voted for the wrong person or your dog decided to gnaw on it) for a new one at an elections office, or at your polling place.

6. The Right to Get Help Casting Your Ballot

If you don't feel comfortable asking a poll worker for help (as in #4 above), you have the right to get help from anyone you choose, with one exception: It can't be from your employer or a union representative, who might have a stake in how you vote and may try to influence you.

According to the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, literacy tests are illegal — and if you can't read or write, you have the right for someone to give you assistance in casting your ballot. They can even read your ballot to you. They just can't tell you how you should be voting.

7. The Right to Drop Off Your Completed Vote-by-Mail Ballot at Any Polling Place in California.

The vote-by-mail period ends on Election Day, and ballots must be postmarked November 8 or earlier and be received by November 15.

You can also drop your paper ballot off in one of the official vote-by-mail drop boxes, which close when the polls close (8 p.m. on November 8).

And you have one last option: You can drop your completed paper ballot off at any vote center in counties participating in the Voter's Choice Act OR at any polling place (not just the one in your district). Check to see if you have to wait in line or if you can skip to the front of the line to drop your ballot off.

If you can't do it yourself, you can ask anyone to return your ballot for you — as long as they're not getting paid to return ballots on a per ballot basis. Make sure you fill out the authorization section on the outside of your ballot envelope in order for your ballot to be counted.

8. The Right to Get Election Materials in a Language Other Than English

Under the federal Voting Rights Act and the California state Elections Code, election materials must be made available to voters in another language IF enough people in your voting precinct speak your language.

On a federal level, that means:

• a minority group of more than 10,000 or 5% of all total voting-age citizens who speak that language
• lower English literacy rates, and
• poor English spoken fluency.

But on a local level, the bar is set much lower, at just 3%. So, in addition to more commonly-spoken languages such as Spanish, Vietnamese and Korean, certain counties may be required to at least post a version of the ballot at polling places that has been translated into less-common languages like Burmese, Laotian, Urdu, Telugu and more.

9. The Right to Ask Questions to Elections Officials about Election Procedures

If you ask someone a question they can't answer, they must send you to the right person for an answer. However, they can stop answering you if you are being disruptive.

In California, each county must also allow members of the public the opportunity to watch the election process — as long as they don't threaten ballot security or voter privacy. It must be a "hands-off" observation from afar, meaning no handling of ballots or providing any other assistance of any of the operations.

Check with your local county elections office to see if there's a schedule of "Public Observation" events or whether you need to pre-register to observe the elections happenings at a polling place or vote center on Election Day.

10. The Right to Report Any Illegal or Fraudulent Election Activity

If you believe that any of your above rights have been violated — and election laws have been broken — you may report it to an elections official or the Secretary of State's office. To report a criminal violation of the Elections Code, you can download a complaint form in English or Spanish on the SOS website or call the confidential, toll-free voter hotline at (800) 345-VOTE (8683).