California ramps up vote by mail for November election

MEDFORD, Ore. – COVID-19 has rocked the voting experience for states across the country.

This election season, California voters will experience a similar vote by-mail process to the one Oregon voters have used for years. Prior to these changes, Californians had to make a special request to mail in their ballot. This means it’s imperative that residents in California make sure their voter registration is update, especially your address. A new feature California voters can opt into is My Voter Status.

“You can sign up to choose to get automatic updates by email, text message, or voice call on your vote-by mail ballot so you know when it’s on the way to you, when you’re county will receive it, when it’s been counted, and if there’s any issues that you need them to correct you’ll be reminded of that too,” said Sam Mahood, Press Secretary for California’s Secretary of State.

It’s also important to note the county may not get election results the night of. Since many states are taking up some type of vote by mail option it’ll take longer to count the votes. The California Secretary of State office tells NBC5 they would much rather get an accurate result than a quick one.

The Oregon’s Secretary of State says she feels confidant in Oregon’s vote by mail system, which started 22 years ago.