California starts early in-person voting ahead of June election

LOS ANGELES – California kicked off early in-person voting over the weekend, opening vote centers across 30 counties.

Voters headed to the centers to cast their ballots in person, obtain replacement ballots, register on the same day or drop off completed ballots ahead of Election Day on June 2.

“Think of Election Day as the last day to vote – not the only day. California is committed to giving voters more days and more ways to participate,” California Secretary of State Shirley Weber said in a statement. “Make sure you vote by the deadline.”

Vote

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center locations

For locations of early vote centers and official ballot drop boxes, voters can visit caearlyvoting.sos.ca.gov.

Voters can also verify their registration status online.

Registered voters can track their ballots by signing up at wheresmyballot.sos.ca.gov.

Primary ballot

The primary ballot includes races for governor, seven other statewide offices, four seats on the Board of Equalization, all of California’s 52 congressional seats, 20 of the 40 state Senate seats and all 80 seats in the Assembly.

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The top two candidates in all state and federal races will advance to the November general election, regardless of party. If no candidate receives a majority in the county races, which are all nonpartisan, the top two will meet in the general election.

Voting options

Voters have several ways to return their completed ballots:

Drop-off

Securely drop off ballots at designated drop boxes, polling locations, vote centers or county elections offices.

In-person

County elections officials will offer early voting at their offices, with many counties providing additional early voting sites.

By mail

To ensure a ballot is counted, it must be postmarked by or on Election Day, June 2, 2026, and received by June 9, 2026.

Los Angeles County

In Los Angeles County, 122 vote centers are open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. for in-person voting, voter registration and vote-by-mail ballot returns.

Eligible voters who have not registered can visit any vote center, complete a conditional voter registration and cast a ballot. Once the registration is validated through the statewide database, the ballot will be processed like all others, officials said.

County election officials encouraged voters to review their ballots carefully and vote early, noting the ballot includes a large number of contests and candidates.

Voters can also use the interactive sample ballot, an optional tool that allows them to mark selections on a smartphone or computer and transfer them to a ballot-marking device at a vote center.

For contests with many candidates, the ballot-marking device displays five candidates at a time, and voters can select the “More” button to view the full list.

A list and map of vote center locations are available here.

Information on the county’s 400-plus drop boxes is available here.

Orange County

In Orange County, a hazardous materials threat in Garden Grove has resulted in some last minute changes to its plans to open 39 vote centers Saturday and expand to 191 on May 30.

With thousands of people under evacuation orders in Garden Grove and several surrounding communities, a planned vote center at the Garden Grove Sports and Recreation Center has been converted to an emergency evacuation center and will be closed to voters until further notice, the Registrar of Voters Office has announced.

“This city building is serving as a care and shelter facility for the community to assist those displaced by the incident,” the registrar’s office said in a statement late Friday.

Ballot drop boxes located within the evacuation area will also be unavailable until further notice.

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