Learn how to register voters in the state of California in this 20-slide presentation. If you have questions about the information, please contact us at sddocs2017@gmail.com

1. New Voter Registration
Thanks to Larry McNamara for sharing this
presentation
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2. Who Can Register...
• U.S. Citizen
• Resident of California
• Not currently in prison or on parole for a convicted
felony; can be on probation, though
• Not found to be mentally incompetent
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3. Pre-Registration (new in 2017)
• As of March 2017, U.S. citizens aged 16 or 17 can
pre-register to vote in California
• Pre-registrants must meet all the other eligibility
requirements to register and vote
• Will be automatically added to voter rolls on their
18th birthday
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4. 4
Registration portion
Receipt portion
Voter registration form:
• Quicker/more accurate if you fill it out form them
• Ask for driver’s license and copy info
• Takes 3 minutes

5. • Field 1: Must mark “Yes” or “No” to 3 questions about
• U.S. citizenship
• Age
• Fields 2 and 3: First name, middle name (or initial), and
last name should match CA DL/ID
Start with first name, not last name
Name must match name on DL or ID card
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6. • Field 5: Home (residential) address for voting
purposes
• Must indicate apt number
• P.O. Boxes and business addresses are not valid
• Field 6: City, zip code, and county name
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7. • Field 7: If no street address, they can give an exact
description of where they live in this field, cross
streets, route, box, bridges, or other landmarks can
be used
• Mostly used for people in rural areas with
nonspecific street addresses, or homeless people
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8. • Field 8: Mailing address – Complete only if they
want to receive election mail at a different
address than their residential address
• Field 9: City, state, zip code, etc
• Fields 10 and 11: Date and place of birth, must be
spelled out in its entirety, no abbreviations
Caution: Don’t forget to fill out U.S. state
OR foreign country of birth
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9. • Field 12: CA DL/ID Card number
• If they don’t have driver’s license or CA ID, then get
the last four of the Social Security Number
• If they do not have any of the above:
• Leave the field blank
• A unique identification number will be assigned
by the California Secretary of State
Caution: If they have either a driver’s license or
CA ID, then this number MUST be provided 9

10. • Field 13: E-mail address (optional)
• Field 14: Phone number (optional)
• Optional, but strongly recommended
• Allows Registrar to contact the voter if there are
any issues with the form
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11. Field 15: Preferred political party
• If Independent or decline to state, mark the “No
party preference” box.
• “American Independent Party” is NOT
“independent” It’s actually an ultra-right group
• There can be only one mark in field 15 with no
corrections or alterations
• A new form must be filled out if an error is made
• To vote in Democratic Presidential primary, you
must be a Democrat or Independent
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12. • Field 16: If the voter wants to receive ballot by
mail for all elections, place their initials in this
field
• Increases turnout significantly!
• Convenient – fill out ballot at home
• Secure – know you’re properly registered and your
vote is counted before Election Day
• Can be mailed or dropped off at polling place
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13. If registered voter wants to sign up for vote-by-mail:
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14. • Field 17: Complete only if previously registered and
changed address, surname, or political party preference
• Must fill out this entire section if previously registered
• If the individual cannot recall their previous address, it
can be left blank
• Check to see if registered at sdvote.com
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15. • Field 18: This field must contain the signature and date
of signing
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16. • Optional, voters can:
• Offer to be contacted by the Registrar if they want to be
a poll worker or volunteer to host a polling place
• Offer their ethnicity or race
• Request the language in which they wish to receive
election material
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17. • You must complete this on the registration portion
and the receipt portion of the form because…
• You filled in the form on behalf of the individual
and/or
• You are returning the form on behalf of the
individual
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18. Last steps….
• Double-check to make sure everything filled out
properly
• Tear off the bottom and give to voter, this is their
receipt
• They will receive a Voter Notification Card in the
mail confirming their registration (2-3 weeks)
• Congratulate new voter and remind them of
important dates
• Forms must be turned into the Registrar of Voters
within three business days of completion of the
form
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19. FAQs from Voters
I live in another CA county. Can I use the San Diego
form?
• YES! It may delay your registration somewhat, so not
advised close to the registration deadline.
I’m in the military. Where do I register to vote?
• Can register in CA for voting purposes, even if
stationed elsewhere. Same for students
I can’t speak English. Can I register?
• YES! As long as they’re a US citizen. Can request
election materials in a different language.
How do I know if my registration went through and is
active?
• Voter can check status at www.sdvote.com 19

20. Important
• Use black or blue ballpoint ink
• You do NOT need to be a registered voter to register
others, you also do not need to be of age or even a
resident.
• You do NOT need to be nonpartisan while registering
voters. However….
• You MUST turn in all registration cards, regardless
of party preference
• You MUST provide a card to anyone who asks
• You can NOT offer incentives to register
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