Irvine Voters Guide: What to Know for Election Day on November 3
Polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday in California, and every active registered voter in Irvine was already mailed a ballot for the November 3 election.
Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, and Irvine voters will decide a governor's race, 14 statewide propositions and local contests in an election that has been underway by mail for weeks. In California, every active registered voter was mailed a ballot, so many residents have already voted. Those who have not can return that ballot, vote in person at a vote center, or use a ballot drop box before the deadline.
Polls and vote centers are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Pacific Time on Tuesday. A mail ballot counts if it is postmarked by November 3 and received within seven days, or if it is hand-delivered to a voting location or drop box by 8 p.m. on Election Day. Voters who need a replacement ballot, language assistance or accessible voting equipment can get help at any vote center in Orange County, not only the one nearest home.
Most California voters do not need to show photo identification. An exception can apply to some first-time voters who registered by mail and did not provide identification information when they registered. Voters who missed the regular registration deadline are not shut out: conditional, or same-day, registration is available through Election Day at vote centers and county elections offices, allowing an eligible resident to register and cast a conditional ballot in the same visit.
At the top of the statewide ballot, the governor's race pits Xavier Becerra, a Democrat, against Steve Hilton, a Republican. Further down, voters will weigh 14 statewide propositions covering a wide range of policy and financing questions. Two that have drawn wide attention are Proposition 37, a middle-income homebuyer loan program backed by up to $25 billion in revenue bonds, and Proposition 39, which would require government-issued identification to vote.
For Irvine residents, the practical steps are simple. Decide how you will vote, check that your mail ballot is signed and dated if you are returning it, and leave extra time if you plan to vote in person late in the day. If you are in line when polls close, stay in line. Once you have voted, you can track a mail ballot through the state's tracking tools to confirm it was received and counted.
