The election has ended and you can no longer vote. But campaigns in close congressional races across California are scrambling to make sure their supporters’ votes are counted.
A process known as “ballot curing” is becoming increasingly common, with campaigns reaching out to voters whose votes weren’t counted for technical reasons and giving them a chance to correct the mistake. That could mean asking you to correct your address or adding your signature to an envelope you forgot to sign.
The stakes are especially high in California’s battleground states, where voters could decide which party controls the House next year.
Of the 11 U.S. congressional races for which The Associated Press had not announced a winner as of Wednesday, five are in California. Republicans only need one more victory to gain a majority in Congress and the elusive triple threat of control of the House, Senate and the presidency.
There are several close races across California, and both parties are mobilizing volunteers to reach voters and resolve issues with ballots. They are spread across Orange and Riverside counties, where Republicans and Democrats are fiercely contesting key House seats.
“Every vote counts,” said Kim Alexander, president of the California Voters Foundation. “People say that all the time, but you really see it in the hardening of ballots in close races like this.”
This process has become more important as California has moved to conducting elections primarily by mail. This year, all registered voters were mailed a ballot. Voters can return their ballots by mail or drop them off at designated boxes or voting centers.
But in order for a ballot to be counted, it must follow several rules, and a ballot can be challenged for a variety of reasons. These include missing ballots from envelopes, multiple ballots being returned in one envelope, and voters providing an incorrect address. According to the California Voter Foundation, the most common reason for rejecting a ballot is that it was returned too late. More than 75,000 votes were rejected in California’s March primary because they were not received by the deadline. Ballots must be postmarked by Election Day and received within seven days after the election.
Another common problem is that the signature on the ballot envelope does not match the voter’s signature on other forms of identification.
“Young voters and first-time voters are more likely to have problems voting by mail because they are not used to using the mail, and they don’t have a signature in place,” Alexander said. said. “The idea that someone would have their ballot rejected the first time they vote is also very discouraging. We want people to have a positive first-time voting experience.”
According to state law, election officials must notify voters by phone, text or email if there is a problem with their ballot. Voters then have until Dec. 1 to correct their ballots and ensure they are counted. As of Tuesday, California had about 161,000 ballots left to process before they were rejected.
A total of 108,982 mail-in ballots were rejected in the March primary, representing 1.56% of voters, according to the California Voter Foundation.
“It honestly breaks my heart to see these piles of ballots in election offices,” Alexander said.
Election workers sort ballots at the Orange County Voter Registration Office in Santa Ana.
(Allen J. Scherben/Los Angeles Times)
In addition to election officials reaching out to affected voters, political parties are also enlisting volunteers to repair ballots from voters, especially those likely to be supporters of a candidate or cause.
Battleground California, an independent spending campaign focused on six competitive Congressional races, is partnering with community groups across Southern California to elect Democratic legislators. Despite predictions that Republicans could win the House majority, Michael Gomez Daley said every victory for Democrats is important.
“Come 2026, it’s going to be a lot easier to defend this seat than it is to flip it. And that’s going to give Democrats a little bit of an extra advantage nationally from the start.” ” said Gomez Daley, senior political strategist at California Donor Table and president of Battleground California.
Gomez-Daley examined data from the Riverside County Registrar and showed that among voters between the ages of 18 and 24, a disproportionate number of ballots were rejected due to signature mismatches. These voting results could have an impact on the 41st Congressional District, where Republican incumbent Rep. Ken Calvert maintains a lead over Democratic challenger Will Rollins.
“It just so happens that young voters are primarily voters of color,” Gomez-Daley said.
“The 18- to 24-year-old voters who are being rejected are primarily Latino,” he said of the Riverside County district Democrats are trying to flip.
In Orange County’s 45th Congressional District, the race between Republican Rep. Michelle Steele and Democratic challenger Derek Tran could be decided by a few thousand votes, with volunteers pushing ahead of the Dec. 1 deadline. They have spent nearly 40 hours preparing to sort out the ballots.
Jairo Cortez, executive director of Chispa, an Orange County advocacy group that works primarily with young Latinos, said they are knocking on doors and asking voters because “every vote should be counted.” He said he plans to appeal to the public.
“If this is something that crosses the line with Derek Tran, then we all have a responsibility to come together and do everything within our power to ensure that we have new leadership for that district,” Cortez said. said.
Political campaigns are seizing the fundraising opportunity to send money to supporters to support the ballot repair process.
“President Trump has won the White House, but the election is not over yet,” said a fundraising email from Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik, chair of the House Republican Conference. “We need to ensure that Republicans are present at every step of vote counting and ballot processing to ensure a clean and honest process.”
She urged recipients to donate “as we fight to make every last legal vote count.”
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