Title ELEC, California Elec. Code

A person shall not be appointed to membership on a county council who is registered as preferring another party or registered as “No Party Preference.” Appointment of other persons who cannot register to vote shall be allowed under certain circumstances as described in state Gree…

The removal of residence by an elected or appointed member of a county council from the applicable county shall constitute automatic resignation from the county council. (Added by Stats. 2015, Ch. 726, Sec. 4. (AB 477) Effective January 1, 2016.)

A member of a county council who changes her or his voter registration to no longer prefer the Green Party shall automatically be removed from office upon such registration. (Added by Stats. 2015, Ch. 726, Sec. 4. (AB 477) Effective January 1, 2016.)

County council members additionally may be removed for cause by procedures established in the Green Party’s bylaws. (Added by Stats. 2015, Ch. 726, Sec. 4. (AB 477) Effective January 1, 2016.)

When a person is appointed to a county council, the county council shall file notices of the appointment with the county elections official and the coordinating committee of the Green Party within 30 days after the appointment is made. The notices shall contain the name and addre…

The Department of General Services shall permit any county council that desires to do so to hold meetings in a state building within the county, and a minimum of one meeting each month shall be without charge. (Added by Stats. 2015, Ch. 726, Sec. 4. (AB 477) Effective January 1, …

Any group of individuals, equal in number to the number of presidential electors to which this state is entitled, who desire to be write-in candidates for presidential electors pledged to a particular candidate for President and Vice President of the United States shall file a de…

(a) The declaration of write-in candidacy for presidential elector shall contain the following information: (1) Candidate’s name. (2) Residence address. (3) A declaration stating that the candidate is a write-in candidate for the office of presidential elector. (4) Oath or affirm…

The declaration of write-in candidacy shall be filed with the Secretary of State no later than the 14th day prior to the general election. (Enacted by Stats. 1994, Ch. 920, Sec. 2.)

Only those names written on the ballot at the general election for the office of President and Vice President of the United States for which a group of presidential electors are pledged on the declaration of write-in candidacy filed pursuant to Section 8650 shall be counted as vo…

This chapter shall apply to the recall of local officers. (Enacted by Stats. 1994, Ch. 920, Sec. 2.)

When the city or county elections official is the officer sought to be recalled, the duties imposed upon him or her shall be performed by some other person designated by the governing board. (Enacted by Stats. 1994, Ch. 920, Sec. 2.)

This chapter applies to all jurisdictions. (Amended by Stats. 1996, Ch. 725, Sec. 4. Effective January 1, 1997.)

Ballots not printed in substantial compliance with this chapter shall not be cast nor counted at any election. (Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 676, Sec. 15. (AB 1219) Effective January 1, 2024.)

The ballots of each political party’s central committee shall be designed so that each ballot may be easily and clearly distinguished from, and not confused with, a ballot of any other political party. (Amended by Stats. 1998, Ch. 199, Sec. 43. Effective January 1, 1999.)

(a) All ballots of the same sort prepared by any county elections official, clerk or secretary of a legislative body, or other person having charge of preparing ballots for the same polling place, shall be precisely the same size, arrangement, quality and tint of paper, and kind …

At the top of the first page of the ballot shall be printed in at least 16-point bold type the words “Official Ballot.” Beneath this heading, the name of the election shall be printed in at least 12-point bold type and, in the case of a partisan primary election, the official par…

(a) The instructions to voters shall be printed below the ballot identification and above the contests to be voted on, or in the first column of the ballot as long as no contest is placed below the instructions in that column. The instructions shall be in at least 10-point type a…

(a) (1) On the partisan ballot used in a direct primary election, immediately before or above the contest for President, the following words shall be printed on ballots of parties that require registration as a member of the party to vote in the party’s primary election: “Party-N…

(a) (1) On the ballot used in a statewide general election in each year evenly divisible by the number four, immediately before or above the contest for President, the following words shall be printed: “Party-Nominated Offices Candidates for these offices are the official nominee…

(a) There shall be printed on the ballot in parallel columns all of the following: (1) The respective offices. (2) The names of candidates with sufficient blank spaces to allow the voters to write in names not printed on the ballot, except that no spaces shall be printed for vote…

(a) A voting target shall be printed next to the name of each voting option. The voting targets shall be used by the voters to express their choices as provided for in the instruction to voters. (b) The standard voting target shall be at least 0.12 inches across in either dimensi…

Whenever a foreign translation of the ballot is required by the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended by Public Law 94-73, to appear on the ballot as well as the English language version, the ballot may be so designed as to place the foreign translation next to the voting…

(a) In the case of candidates for delegate to national convention, there shall be printed in at least 10-point bold type, the words, “President of the United States” and “Vote for one group only.” (b) In the case of candidates for President and Vice President, the words “Vote for…

The names of the candidates shall be printed on the ballot, without indentation, in at least 10-point bold type. (Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 676, Sec. 26. (AB 1219) Effective January 1, 2024.)

(a) Each group of names of candidates for a particular office shall be printed in immediate succession to another group of names of candidates for a particular office so as to avoid unnecessary spacing or gaps in the sequence in which each series of groups of names are listed on …

(a) (1) In jurisdictions required to provide translated ballot materials pursuant to Section 203 of the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. Sec. 10503), as that section may be amended from time to time, any ballot that provides a translation of a candidate’s name shall c…

Except for a voter-nominated office at a general election, under the designation of each office shall be printed as many blank spaces, defined by light lines, as there are candidates to be nominated or elected to the office. (Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 676, Sec. 28. (AB 1219) Ef…

Each group of names of candidates for a particular office shall be separated from the succeeding group. Each series of groups shall be headed by a caption that reads “President of the United States,” “President and Vice President,” “State,” “United States Senator,” “United States…

All sides of the columns on the ballot shall be bordered. The binding or stitching of each package of ballots shall be along the top or head of the ballot. If ballots are to be used on a ballot on demand system or another system that prints content onto ballots, ballots are not r…

(a) The ballots may be printed on the same leaf with a stub not over one inch in depth. The stub may be separated from the ballot by a horizontal perforated line or rule from side to side. Upon this stub shall be printed only the number of the ballot. (b) Stubs are not required o…

A ballot stub may be used for a ballot. The ballots may contain printed and distinguishing marks if secrecy in voting is protected. (Repealed and added by Stats. 2023, Ch. 676, Sec. 32. (AB 1219) Effective January 1, 2024.)

(a) The number on each ballot shall be the same as that on the corresponding stub, and the ballots and stubs shall be numbered consecutively in each county, or the ballots and stubs may be numbered consecutively within each combination of congressional, senatorial, and Assembly d…

(a) The Secretary of State shall establish a ballot design advisory committee to assist the Secretary of State to promulgate regulations that prescribe ballot design and format. (b) The ballot design advisory committee shall consist of the Secretary of State, or the secretary’s d…

When printed, all ballots shall be bound in stub books, of such size as the clerk may determine. A record of the number of ballots printed shall be kept by the officer authorizing the printing. If stubs are not used pursuant to Section 13216, ballots may be bound by another metho…

If two or more officers are to be elected for the same office for different terms, the terms for which each candidate for the office is nominated shall be printed on the ballot as a part of the title of the office. If at a general election an office is to be filled for a full ter…

A member of each precinct board shall cause the following voting information to be publicly posted at each polling place: (a) A sample version of the ballot that will be used for the election. (b) Information regarding the date of the election and the hours during which polling p…

(a) In counties and precincts where the Secretary of State has determined that it is appropriate, the county elections official shall provide facsimile copies of the ballot, as described in subdivision (b), with the ballot measures and ballot instructions printed in Spanish, one …

(a) Before opening the polls, the precinct board shall post in separate, convenient places at or near the polling place, and of easy access to the voters, at least one printed copy of the voter list for that polling place. The copies of the voter list shall be by street address i…

The precinct officer shall post the signs required by Section 14106 in plain view within each voting booth or compartment whenever an election has been canceled pursuant to Section 8026. (Enacted by Stats. 1994, Ch. 920, Sec. 2.)

For every election, the elections official shall conduct a semifinal official canvass by tabulating vote by mail and precinct ballots and compiling the results. The semifinal official canvass shall commence immediately upon the close of the polls and shall continue without adjour…

(a) The elections official shall transmit the semifinal official results to the Secretary of State in the manner and according to the schedule prescribed by the Secretary of State prior to each election, for the following: (1) All candidates voted for statewide office. (2) All ca…

Neither the elections official, any member of a precinct board, nor any other person shall count any votes, either for a ballot proposition or candidate, until the close of the polls in that county. After that time, the ballots for all candidates and ballot propositions voted upo…

During the semifinal official canvass, write-in votes shall be counted in accordance with Article 3 (commencing with Section 15340) of Chapter 4. (Repealed and added by Stats. 1998, Ch. 1073, Sec. 27. Effective January 1, 1999.)

(a) Any ballot that is not marked as provided by law shall be rejected. The rejected ballots shall be placed in the package marked for voted ballots or in a separate container as directed by the elections official. All rejected ballots shall have written on the ballot the cause f…

The Secretary of State shall not approve any voting system, or part of a voting system, unless it fulfills the requirements of this code and the regulations of the Secretary of State. (Enacted by Stats. 1994, Ch. 920, Sec. 2.)