(Intro)

Hello Californian! There are a lot of you. If you're watching this, I'm guessing that you, in particular, want to vote. That's great, but first you gotta make sure that you're registered to vote. That's a necessary step. If you're not sure whether you're already registered, there's a link in the description where you can check. If you're not registered, or you've moved or changed your name since the last election, you can go to registertovote.ca.gov and register right now. If you'd prefer to do a paper application, you can get one of those at the DMV, or most post offices and public libraries. However you register, you need to do it before October 24th if you want to vote in the November election.

Once you've registered you have a couple of different options for how you can vote. If you'd rather vote from the comfort of your own home, and let's be honest, why wouldn't you, you have until November 1st to apply to vote by mail. There's a link in the description for the application form. You'll actually have to print it out and mail it in, which is a little bit annoying, but after that, all you have to do is wait for the ballot to show up in the mail, fill it out at your own pace, do all the research you want to, before sending it back before the November 8th election day. If you're applying to vote by mail, there's even an option to sign up to automatically receive absentee ballots for every election, so you don't even ever have to think about it again. They'll just mail you a ballot every time you're eligible to vote.

You can also vote early in person if you want. Generally you can vote at your county elections office during their normal business hours starting 30 days before the election right up until November 7th, but it's best to watch their website ahead of time because they may have longer hours for early voting. There's a link to a list of county elections offices below that has all of their locations, hours, and contact info.

If you want the excitement of voting in person on November 8th, though, you can find out where to go to for your polling location at a link in the description. You can also text the word “Vote” to 468683. California is the only state that has that service. Polls are open from 7 am to 8 pm statewide, and you shouldn't need to bring anything with you, but it's a good idea to bring a form of identification just in case, especially if this is your first time voting. IDs you can bring include a driver's license, state ID, student ID, passport, or a utility bill with your name and address on it.

The California Secretary of State's office does a really awesome thing where, before the election, they will mail you a booklet that shows you what's on the ballot, has information about all of the candidates, and your polling location is printed right on the back. You can also find it online using the link below.

Of course you don't have to vote for every single item on the ballot. You can leave things blank if you want to, but your local elections can be very important, so it's worth checking out what's on there ahead of time. You can even fill out the sample ballot that's included and bring it to the polls with you so you don't forget who you want to vote for. All the links you need to check your registration, and polling location, and sign up for early voting are in the description. Thank you for voting!