Get Informed
Before you vote, learn about what you will be voting on. You do not have to vote on everything! You can just vote on the things you care about.
To help you prepare, all registered voters get two booklets in the mail:
- a Sample Ballot that lists all of the candidates and measures that will be on your ballot. It also shows where you vote (your polling place").
- the Voter Information Guide about statewide candidates and ballot measures, from the California Secretary of State's Office.
You can also use the Easy Voter Guide along with the www.easyvoter.org website; they will tell you about the statewide candidates and propositions in plain language.
All of these have nonpartisan information, which means they just give facts and do not take sides about how you should vote. You may also get mail from campaigns and hear advertisements trying to tell you how to vote. These are partisan.
Talk about the issues and candidates with your family and friends and follow the news about the election. Get information from many different places so you can make the choices that are right for you. Mark your choices on your Sample Ballot and take it with you when you vote.
Decide how you will vote
You can choose if you want to vote:
- at your polling place
- at home with an "absentee ballot"
Find your polling place ("precinct") by looking at the back cover of the Sample Ballot from your county elections office. Or, you can look it up at www.easyvoter.org or www.smartvoter.org .