What voters need to know less than two weeks out from Election Day
Sent by the County of San Luis Obispo Office of the Clerk-Recorder
– With less than two weeks remaining until Election Day, San Luis Obispo County voters are returning ballots at a steady pace in the Statewide Special Election. Clerk-Recorder Elaina Cano said that more than 20 percent of mail ballots sent to voters on Oct. 3 have already been returned and processed, with thousands more received and awaiting processing.
While the return rate is strong, many voters have yet to cast their ballots, and the Elections Office is reminding residents of several key details.
Mail early to ensure ballots are counted
The U.S. Postal Service has advised that residents living more than 50 miles from a postal hub should not expect their ballots to be postmarked on the day they are mailed. Because all San Luis Obispo County voters are more than 50 miles from the Goleta postal hub, officials recommend mailing ballots at least one week before Election Day.
Voters who mail ballots later than that should take them inside a post office to be hand-cancelled or use an official ballot drop box instead.
“If you want to see your vote included in Election Night totals, remember that mail ballots received before Election Day will be processed and tabulated and included in the first set of unofficial results released at 8 p.m.,” Cano said. “Mail ballots received at the polls or by mail between Nov. 4 and Nov. 11 (and postmarked by Nov. 4) will be counted after Election Day, during the official canvass.”
Fewer polling places for this election
Due to a single ballot question, there are fewer jurisdictional boundaries to consider, resulting in fewer polling locations. This election will have 45 polling places compared to about 70 in November 2024.
Voters intending to cast ballots in person should confirm their polling location by checking the stub at the top of their mail ballot or by visiting https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/polling-place.
Bring your mail ballot to speed up in-person voting
Residents who prefer to vote in person on Election Day can do so by bringing their mail ballot to their assigned polling place and exchanging it for a poll ballot. Those who do not bring their mail ballot may still vote, but poll workers will need to call the Elections Office to confirm that a ballot has not already been returned.
The Elections Office is asking in-person voters to be patient while poll workers make these confirmation calls on Nov. 4.
Voter registration still available
The conditional voter registration period runs through 8 p.m. on Election Day. Anyone who still needs to register must do so in person at the Elections Office in San Luis Obispo or at the satellite office in Atascadero, which opens Oct. 27. Conditional registration and same-day voting will also be available at every polling location on Election Day.
Elections Office expands access to voting data
To increase transparency and meet community interest in voting statistics, the Elections Office is releasing detailed updates throughout the election cycle.
On Oct. 17, the office reported that 82 percent of returned ballots had been received by mail, 14 percent via drop box, and 4 percent delivered in person. On Oct. 20, it released data showing that 47 percent of ballots received to date were from voters registered Democrat, 33 percent Republican, 14 percent No Party Preference, 4 percent American Independent, 1 percent Libertarian, and less than 1 percent each Green Party or Peace and Freedom.
The Elections Office will continue providing updated statistics regularly until official election results are released. Additional election information is available at slovote.com/november2025.
