Under existing law, a vote-by-mail ballot is timely cast if it is postmarked or otherwise time-stamped on or before election day and received in the mail no later than 7 days after election day. This bill would instead require a vote-by-mail ballot to be returned to the applicable elections official no later than the close of the polls on election day, except that the bill would require a vote-by-mail ballot cast by a military or overseas voter to be counted if it is postmarked on or before election day and received no later than 7 days after election day.
- Will improve efficiency and expediency by requiring all ballots to be received by election officials no later than Election Day, with a small exception for military members and voters overseas.
- Under existing law, vote-by-mail ballots in California can be accepted for up to seven days after Election Day, delaying the processing of election results and election certification.
- California voters deserve a reasonable timeline of when to expect final election results.