Early-bird voting is a breeze

Early-bird voting is a breeze

You can elect to cast your in-person vote before Nov. 6

Written by Karla Peterson
5:15 p.m., Oct. 26, 2012

Test subject: Early voting in San Diego County

The big picture: Whether you will be traveling on Election Day or just want to teleport yourself out of the political fray ASAP, San Diego County has some options for you. Mail-in ballot applications will be accepted through 5 p.m. on October 30th. If you have a mail-in ballot already but don’t trust the mail, you can drop off your ballot at the Registrar of Voters offices. You won’t even need to get out of the car.

But if you are a registered voter who likes the personal touch, you can cast your vote in person before Nov. 6. I did it earlier this week and found it very liberating. And all those mailers will make a great Halloween bonfire. Here’s how it works.

Early-bird 101: In-office early voting can be done through Election Day at the Registrar of Voters Office, 5201 Ruffin Road in Kearny Mesa. Voting hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The office will also be open on Saturday, Nov. 3 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is at its busiest from weekdays from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and after 3 p.m. If your neighborhood polling place isn’t convenient, you can also vote at the Registrar’s on Election Day (Nov. 6) from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Don’t be intimidated by the barbed-wire fencing around the building or the tiny sliver of a front parking lot; there is plenty of parking to the left of the building. For additional information, call (858- 565-5800 or check online at sdcounty.ca.gov/voters/Eng.

Save this date: If you live for the thrill of participating in an Election Night victory, plan on doing your early voting by Oct. 30. In-office ballots cast after the 30th will not be included in the counts that are released on Nov. 6. Those ballots — along with provisional ballots and mail-in ballots received on Nov. 5 and 6 — are counted during the Official Canvass of the Vote, which happens during the 28-day period after the election.

“It makes no difference, but some people have feelings about that,” San Diego County Registrar of Voters Deborah Seiler said of being part of the Election Night voting pool. “There are rumors that these ballots aren’t counted, but they will be counted. They are all counted.”

Scratch that thought: Another rumor making the rounds involves who is counting those votes. Seiler would like to squelch that one, too.
“One myth floating in the blogosphere is that the ballots are counted by foreign nationals,” Seiler said. “That is not true. We count our ballots right here on Ruffin Road.”

Bring Your Own Ballot?: What should conscientious citizens bring to an early-voting session? Just their well-informed selves. You do not need an ID or your sample ballot, although marking the latter ahead of time will help guide you through the Proposition Jungle.

Give your name to the person behind the desk, and they will look you up in the Registrar’s database. You will be given the choice of a paper- or touch-screen ballot and ushered to the voting room. Do not panic when you discover that your choice of presidential candidates includes comedian Roseanne Barr; she is the official nominee of the Peace and Freedom Party.

Don’t forget to grab an “I Voted” sticker on your way out.

The verdict: While I missed the neighborhood bustle of my local polling place, voting early felt virtuous and convenient. A win-win situation, if you will. And in this contentious political season, who wouldn’t vote for one of those?



Early-bird voting is a breeze | UTSanDiego.com