News

CVF News Roundup + Big Day of Giving

Hi Folks,

I'm writing to share a few updates and news developments we are keeping an eye on at the California Voter Foundation.

Reducing Ballot Rejection

Last month, I testified before the California State Senate and Constitutional Amendments Committee about vote-by-mail ballot rejection and ballot curing. My slide deck and testimony are available on CVF's web site and reflect over a decade's worth of CVF's work on reforms to reduce ballot rejection.

To help voters reduce mistakes when casting vote-by-mail ballots, CVF is supporting AB 1072/Pellerin, directing the Secretary of State to provide uniform guidance to counties and voters explaining the best way to address mistakes made when casting ballots.

We are also working on the final report for our Close Count Transparency Project, which will include many other recommendations to address and accelerate our state's vote-counting process.

California elections officials rejected 122,000 ballots in 2024 election. Here’s why

Excerpts:

Elections officials around California rejected 122,480 vote-by-mail ballots cast during the November general election, or 0.9% of all mail-in ballots, according to data from the Secretary of State’s office.

The vast majority of those arrived late, had mismatched voter signatures or no signature at all.

CA Senate committee explores ballot curing in informational hearing

Hi Folks,

Today the California State Senate and Constitutional Amendments Committee will be holding an informational hearing on the topic of ballot curing.

As California looks to speed up vote counting, election experts hope it won’t come at a cost

Excerpt:

California takes longer to count election ballots than just about any other state. This has some lawmakers looking for ways to speed up the state’s often-criticized tally process.

Democratic Assemblymember Marc Berman of Palo Alto believes his Assembly Bill 5 is a good start.

Meet the Faces of Democracy: Tommy Gong

Excerpt:

Californian Tommy Gong is the deputy county clerk-recorder for Contra Costa County which is located in the San Francisco Bay Area and home to over 700,000 registered voters. He has been an election administrator for over two decades, having served in other California counties including San Luis Obispo and Stanislaus.

California’s Long Vote Count

This story examines the impact of California’s long vote count and features interviews with CVF’s Kim Alexander and California State Assembly Member Marc Berman discussing the impact of the long count and potential ways to accelerate the counting process.

Full Audio

They’re fighting over voter ID again

Excerpt:

BALLOT BATTLE: California is preparing to enact a new law to prevent cities from crafting their own voter identification laws. And that could once again place the state in the crosshairs of the new Trump administration, just as he takes over.

Support Democracy This Giving Tuesday

Dear Friends,

For this Giving Tuesday, we invite you to make a meaningful impact on California’s democracy by supporting the California Voter Foundation (CVF).

California has a new Legislature — while votes are still being counted

Excerpt:

Today, a newly-elected class of state lawmakers was sworn into office — before their election results are certified. And in one competitive Assembly district, a leading candidate took office even though her race is still not called.

This is the reality under California’s notoriously slow ballot counting process — a process that one state lawmaker is vowing to change.

Close Count Update #8: CD 13 still undecided as certification deadline looms

Hi Folks,

Over the Thanksgiving break, we continued monitoring ballot processing and updated our Close Count Tracker with new numbers in close contests as more votes were added to results.

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