As we mentioned earlier, the Official Canvass of the Vote started Wednesday, marking the beginning of the 28-day period required to complete vote tallies and ballots and reconciliation of votes.
“The Canvass is the least understood, most important part of the elections process,” Slocum, our Chief Elections Officer, is apt to declare.
Categories: Ballots · Election Day/Night · Elections Office · Results · Signature verification · Vote By Mail · Vote counting · Voting · legislation
Tagged: canvass, election results, Official Canvass, official results, provisional ballots, Vote counting
So they gave you a provisional ballot — now what?
We won’t turn any voter away (during polling place hours). But if we don’t find you on the Roster, you’ll be given a provisional ballot.
What does this mean? How is it any different from a regular ballot? The answer — the ballot isn’t different. It’s just processed differently.
Here’s a few of the many different scenarios that would result in a provisional ballot:
1. The voter’s name doesn’t show up on the Combined Roster-Index.
2. The voter is a Vote by Mail voter that wants to vote at the polls, but doesn’t have a Vote by Mail ballot to surrender.
3. The address printed on the roster does not match the voter’s current address.
If you vote on a provisional ballot, we’ll ask you to seal it in a green-bordered envelope that looks like this:
After this step, most voters ask us, “how do I know if my vote was counted?”
In the 28 days following the election, the Elections Office will review and determine the eligibility of each provisional voter’s ballot. If you are eligible to vote in this election, your ballot will be counted and added to the final vote tally.
If you vote provisionally today, you can call 866-830-VOTE (8683) beginning December 2. If it’s not counted, you are entitled to know why it did not count.
And, by the way, if you’re just looking for results from today’s election, visit http://www.shapethefuture.org/elections/results/november2008 beginning 8:05 p.m. and stay tuned to Channel 26!
Categories: Ballots · Election Day/Night · Elections Office · Poll workers · Polling place · Signature verification · Vote counting · Voting
Tagged: does my vote count, provisional ballots, provisional voter, voting info, voting options
We are fully expecting the polls to be packed on Nov. 4 and we want to address two different voting scenarios that may catch voters unaware at the polls. If you are a first time voter or you show up to vote at a precinct that may not be expecting you, there may be a few extra requirements needed from you before you cast your ballot.
First Time Voters
If this is going to be your first time voting, and you’re planning to vote at the polls, keep in mind that you may have to show some I.D.California Elections Code requires identification to be shown at the polls if it was not verified when you registered to vote.
Don’t be caught off guard. Have your identification ready just in case. There are 30 forms of acceptable identification – from a driver’s license to a utility bill. Check out http://www.shapethefuture.org/voters/first-time.asp for more info.
Provisional Voting
Provisional voting occurs when a voter does not appear on a precinct’s roster. This can occur for a number of reasons.
Provisional Ballots are cast on paper ballots — not on the eSlates. After the voter marks his/her choices on the ballot, the voter will place the voted ballot into a Provisional Ballot Envelope and fill out the information necessary including a signature — similar to the information placed on a Vote by Mail envelope.
The Provisional Ballots will go through the same process as Vote by Mail ballots. Signatures will be verified to confirm voter eligibility. Once it is verified, the ballots will be extracted as we explained in our previous post and the ballots will be processed for counting.
Still have questions? Call (650) 312-5222!
Categories: Ballots · Campaigns/Political parties · Election Day/Night · Elections Office · Poll workers · Polling place · Vote By Mail · Vote counting · Voter registration · Voting · eSlates · legislation
Tagged: first time voters, id at the polls, polling place requirements, provisional ballots, provisional voters, provisional voting, showing ID to vote, voter eligibility
Think we can wash our hands of Election Day? I mean, it is Wednesday evening already.
Sorry to report, but Wednesday, the day after Election Day, means that our work has just begun. This election is not over until we say it’s over, days of the calendar notwithstanding.
We’re still counting a lot of remaining ballots. There were Vote by Mail ballots that arrived at the Elections Office on Monday and Tuesday, Vote by Mail ballots that were dropped off at polling places on Election Day, and provisional ballots cast at the polls. Signatures must be checked and provisional ballots carefully reconciled, all of which takes some time.
So that means that we’re still reporting race results. We posted new results on our Web site at 5 p.m. today and will do so again on Friday, the 9th at 5:00 pm and again on Tuesday, the 13th at 5:00 pm.
Some races will be affected by our continuing count. Case in point, San Bruno’s Measure F, which is currently going down by one vote. Yes, one vote. That one vote was counted today – our latest results release around 1 a.m. this morning based on votes counted yesterday showed the measure in a dead tie. Stay tuned to the bitter end; every last vote matters for this one.
Categories: Ballots · Election Day/Night · Results · Vote By Mail · Vote counting
Tagged: counting, Election Day/Night, election results, provisional ballots, San Bruno Measure F, Vote By Mail, voter turnout
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