Voting By Mail Drops

Sacramento, CA – If the vote by mail ballots are any indication, turnout in Tuesday’s election may be dismal.  State Election officials have seen a drop in the number of voters mailing their absentee ballots so far, which could be due to the lackluster governor’s race, and no U.S. Senate race or high-interest initiatives on the ballot.

There is still time to turn in your ballot even if it is a mail-in ballot.  Instead of mailing it, you can drop it off at any polling place.  In Tuolumne County, election officials offer you an additional opportunity to cast your vote.  County Clerk and Auditor Controller Debi Bautista says her office will be open Saturday in case anyone needs to drop off a ballot, or vote early.  The hours are 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.

Today, the California Secretary of State’s Office issued a final pre-election report showing that 17,803,823 citizens are registered to vote.  That is hike of 517,940 from four years ago.  The percentage of voters with no political party preference has followed that trend, up from 20.3% in 2010 to the current 23.3%.  Democrats and Republicans both show a slight drop in supporters.