Voting & Elections

Streamlines election consolidation by allowing political subdivisions to file directly with county election officials. Transfers authority to canvass consolidated election returns from county supervisors to county election officials. Removes the 12-card maximum limit on voter instruction materials at polling places. Requires a designated precinct board member to formally announce poll openings and closings.

Extends the timeline for challenging local election methods from 45 to 90 days under the California Voting Rights Act. Allows cities under 50,000 residents to elect up to 20% of council members at-large while using district elections. Requires jurisdictions to publish demographic data 9 months before redistricting elections. Mandates comprehensive public outreach plans and translation services for redistricting hearings.

Makes technical changes to existing definitions for vote by mail and military voters.

Establishes an 11-member independent Citizens Redistricting Commission in Merced County to redraw supervisor districts. Requires commissioners to be politically diverse county residents with no recent political or lobbying experience. Mandates at least seven public hearings and a 30-day public review period before finalizing district maps. Prohibits commissioners from holding public office for 5 years and from lobbying for 3 years after service.

Requires counties to create voter education plans to boost registration and electoral participation. Mandates counties to provide information about online registration, vote-by-mail, and key election deadlines. Requires the Secretary of State to provide plan templates and publish county plans online. Counties must submit updated outreach plans by October 1st of each odd-numbered year.

Requires online publication of vote-by-mail system certification reports on the Secretary of State's website. Mandates public posting of certification results within 60 days after testing remote voting systems. Enhances transparency of vote-by-mail system approval process through digital accessibility.

Expands early voting by allowing mail ballots to be cast in person up to 29 days before election day. Requires counties to provide at least one early voting location on the Saturday before election day. Eliminates the voter identification envelope requirement for in-person vote-by-mail voting. Strengthens penalties for voter intimidation and election interference with felony charges.

Requires election officials to post updated election results twice weekly instead of once weekly after elections. Mandates detailed updates including processed ballot counts and estimates of remaining unprocessed ballots. Requires officials to specify the date and time of the next planned results update. Provides state reimbursement to local agencies for any additional costs from increased reporting requirements.

Requires ballot measures to display the three largest financial contributors supporting and opposing the initiative. Mandates petition signers to confirm they reviewed funding disclosures before signing. Expands ballot labels to include detailed lists of supporters and opponents with strict formatting rules. Requires verification of supporter and opponent organizations' eligibility through documentation and signed statements.

Expands the Voter Bill of Rights to guarantee replacement ballots for voters who lack or mismark their ballots. Allows voters to request a polling place ballot when surrendering a mail ballot or confirming non-voting status. Requires the Voter Bill of Rights to be available in multiple languages based on local demographics. Mandates clear display of voting rights information at all precincts and in voter guides.

Makes technical changes to provisions regarding interpretation of food and agriculture laws.

Extends campaign contribution limits to judicial, school district, and community college district elections starting January 2027. Sets a base contribution limit of $5,900 per election for most offices, with higher limits for statewide positions. Authorizes local education boards and the Judicial Council to impose stricter campaign contribution limits. Establishes criminal penalties for violations while empowering local authorities to enforce their own contribution limits.

Streamlines voter registration by removing separate rules for military and overseas voters. Integrates military and overseas voters into the standard conditional voter registration process. Allows military and overseas voters to register up to and including election day.

Expands online voter registration to Californians without driver's licenses using social security numbers. Requires the Secretary of State to develop a secure system for uploading digital signatures by 2027. Mandates accessibility features for voters with disabilities in the new registration system. Establishes identity verification using social security numbers, full names, and birth dates.

Requires immediate enforcement of court orders against voting rights violations even during appeals. Allows the Attorney General and Secretary of State to halt enforcement if needed for election integrity. Mandates violating jurisdictions to reimburse county election officials for enforcement costs. Applies only to voting rights and redistricting cases filed after January 1, 2026.

Prohibits DMV from offering voter registration to individuals who show proof of non-citizenship. Requires DMV to transmit voter registration applications to Secretary of State within 10 days. Mandates secure data sharing between DMV and Secretary of State through formal agreement. Protects confidential voter information from unauthorized third-party access.

Establishes a statewide system for voters to correct mistakes on their ballots. Requires the Secretary of State to develop uniform ballot correction standards with county election officials. Authorizes the Secretary of State to implement regulations ensuring consistent application statewide.

Authorizes local agencies to require property owners to certify ADUs are occupied at least 6 months per year. Mandates annual recertification of ADU occupancy for the first 10 years of operation. Requires local agencies to send two notices before enforcing occupancy requirements. Prohibits excessive fines and prevents forced demolition of non-compliant ADUs.

Protects voting rights for residents temporarily displaced by natural disasters. Allows displaced voters to maintain their original voting address while using a temporary mailing address. Preserves voter registration at original residence if planning to return or relocate within same jurisdiction.

Transfers responsibility for ballot measure titles and summaries from Attorney General to Legislative Analyst. Requires committees to create detailed 'Official Top Funders' sheets for ballot measure petitions. Mandates disclosure of major financial contributors on ballot materials with specific formatting rules. Makes all changes contingent upon voter approval of Senate Constitutional Amendment 3.

Requires state agencies to collect demographic data on discrimination and harassment complaints starting July 2026. Mandates annual public reporting of complaint data while protecting individual privacy. Creates public dashboards to display aggregated complaint statistics and outcomes. Establishes new reporting requirements for both education and civil rights departments.

Extends the deadline for mail-in ballots to be counted from 3 to 7 days after election day if postmarked by election day. Allows voters requesting recounts to specify the order of ballot counting by batch or county. Requires election officials to post recount results publicly within one day of completion. Strengthens ballot security by restricting handling to authorized personnel and protecting voter information.

Establishes confidential voter status protections for individuals with cognitive impairments like dementia. Authorizes power of attorney holders to apply for voter confidentiality on behalf of cognitively impaired individuals. Requires county election officials to exclude protected voters from all public voter lists and rosters. Mandates annual reporting to the Legislature on confidential voter status applications and misuse allegations.

Requires county nonpartisan offices to advance top two primary candidates to the general election. Aligns district attorney and sheriff elections with presidential election cycles. Eliminates primary elections when only two candidates qualify for a county office. Mandates six-year terms for district attorneys and sheriffs elected in 2022.

Reduces the deadline for voters to verify mail ballot signatures to 22 days after an election. Establishes a statewide ballot tracking system for voters to monitor their mail ballot status. Allows election officials to use ballot drop boxes for collecting signature verification forms. Permits reduced canvassing hours when only signature verification ballots remain to be counted.