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Democracy Delivered First Class
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) picked up about 1.9 million ballots for Orange County’s registered voters on Saturday. A 34-second time-lapse video of the loading of the ballots onto 10 USPS truck trailers can be viewed on the Registrar of Voters’ YouTube channel @ocrov at youtube.com/ocrov. Voters started receiving their 2025 Statewide Special Election Vote-By-Mail ballot yesterday, October 6. When voters receive their ballot, they can mark their ballot, then follow the instructions on the official envelope to sign and seal their ballot in the postage-paid envelope provided. The voting period is open for the next 28 days until 8 p.m. on November 4. If voters have any questions about how to cast their ballot, visit ocvote.gov/voting. Vote Easy. Vote Secure. Bob Page Registrar of Voters |
| Current Tweet Today, October 6, two-person Registrar of Voters teams inspected and unlocked Ballot Drop Boxes |
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| Ballot Drop Boxes Are Open Yesterday, October 6, two-person Registrar of Voters teams inspected and unlocked Ballot Drop Boxes throughout the county for use in the 2025 Statewide Special Election. Teams will now regularly retrieve ballots from 124 Ballot Drop Boxes and three ballot drop off locations, with increasing frequency as Election Day approaches. Starting October 25, teams will also collect ballots from Vote Centers. Ballots are brought to the Orange County Registrar of Voters main facility for secure processing. To find a Ballot Drop Box or drop off location near you, visit ocvote.gov/voting. |
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| Who Can Return Your Ballot? Under California law, all voters have the right to authorize any person to return their completed Vote-By-Mail ballot to the Registrar of Voters. We recommend voters mark their 2025 Statewide Special Election ballot privately, place it in the return envelope, seal, and sign the envelope before giving it to someone else to return for them. If voters authorize someone to return their ballot, that person is required to sign their ballot envelope and return it to us within three days or by 8 p.m. on November 4, whichever is earlier. We also recommend voters only authorize someone they trust to return their Vote-By-Mail ballot and that they confirm we received their ballot using the OC Ballot Express ballot tracking service. Voters can sign up at ocvote.gov/track to receive a text message or email when their ballot is received and another when the ballot is counted. |
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| Voter Assistance Hotline Have questions about the 2025 Statewide Special Election? Our team of Customer Service Agents are ready to assist! Our Voter Assistance Hotline went live last week. It is available Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Voters who have questions can contact us directly by:
When select Vote Centers open on October 25, the hours of operation for our Voter Assistance Hotline will expand to cover weekend support from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Beginning November 1, the hotline will be available daily 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. On Election Day, our Voter Assistance Hotline will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m |
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| Keeping Ballots Secure When voted ballots are collected, Registrar of Voters uses teams of two staff members to transport the ballots and record chain of custody at each step in the process. For ballots placed in our 124 Ballot Drop Boxes and three ballot drop off locations, the two-person collection teams are issued a new randomized route each day. The Registrar of Voters communicates with them by cell phone and 800 MHz radio. We also track their GPS location throughout the day. When they arrive at an assigned Ballot Drop Box or drop off location on their route, the team must take and submit several photos using their cell phone, showing that:
Only once their photos have been reviewed does the Registrar of Voters give the teams permission to proceed to the next stop on their route. During the 2024 Presidential General Election, the ballot collection teams submitted nearly 12,000 photos. The team also records the number on the security seal that they use to secure the closure of the ballot bag. That seal number is confirmed at the Registrar of Voters before the ballot bag is opened and the ballots are removed for processing. |
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