Riverside County voters can now cast their ballots in person at any of 21 vote centers spread across the county.
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“These locations will be staffed by trained election workers who will assist voters, facilitate in person voting and accept completed vote-by-mail ballots,” Elizabeth Florer, public information officer for the Riverside County Registrar of Voters (ROV), said in an email to The Riverside Record.
A full list of vote centers and ballot drop-off locations, including dates and hours of operation, is included in the Riverside County Voter Information Guide, which was mailed to all registered voters. It can also be found here on the ROV’s website.
A map of all vote centers can be accessed here. For voters who wish to turn in their vote-by-mail ballot, a map of drop-off locations can be found here. Secure drop boxes will remain available until 8 p.m. on Election Day.
An additional 131 vote centers will open October 31, including five super vote centers at La Sierra Community Center in Riverside, the Outlets at Lake Elsinore in Lake Elsinore, Heritage High School in Menifee, the Palm Desert Community Center in Palm Desert and the Beaumont Civic Center in Beaumont.
Just like in the June primary, these five sites operate like traditional vote centers but have additional capacity to reduce wait times and accommodate higher voter traffic.
In response to a question about the possibility of federal agents being at or around vote centers, Florer said the ROV was “committed to ensuring every eligible voter can exercise their right to vote safely, privately, and without intimidation.
“The ROV will continue to follow applicable laws and established election procedures to protect voter access and ensure that voting operations proceed appropriately,” she said.
For those who prefer to mail their ballots, Florer encouraged voters to return their completed ballots as early as possible to ensure they get delivered to the ROV in time to be counted.
In order for a ballot to be counted, it must be postmarked on or before November 3 and be received by the ROV no later than November 10. Florer noted voters can track their vote-by-mail ballot through the California Secretary of State’s Where’s My Ballot? notification service.
She also said those who missed the voter registration deadline earlier this week can still register to vote and cast a ballot through the state’s same-day voter registration process at the ROV’s office or an eligible vote center through Election Day.
As of Thursday, the ROV had issued approximately 1.48 million vote-by-mail ballots, which includes supplemental voter registration and ballot reissues. Approximately 151,289 ballots had been returned and accepted. Ballots will not be counted until after the polls close at 8 p.m. on Election Day.
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