As the Nov. 3 midterm election nears, voter registration deadlines across the country are quickly approaching – or have already passed.
Californians have until Oct. 19 – or 15 days prior to Election Day – to register to vote. In this election, Californians will have the chance to select a new governor – Gov. Gavin Newsom is term-limited – choose whether the state can impose a one-time tax on billionaires and cast their ballot in various other state and local-level elections and initiatives.
The second Trump administration has repeatedly challenged voting registration and rights. Voter registration groups are being investigated, and many red states are imposing voter identification and proof-of-citizenship laws. Trump has repeatedly alleged there are hundreds of thousands of noncitizens casting ballots – something experts say happens far less than claimed.
California does not require voters to show identification before casting their ballot, but a proposition for a constitutional amendment that would create a voter ID law for Californians will appear on the ballot.
The Department of Justice sued California on Thursday over the state allegedly allowing noncitizens to vote – claims California and Los Angeles voting officials have called baseless. Noncitizens rarely attempt to vote, according to the Washington Post.
University students face a unique set of challenges as new voters, including adjusting residency between their home and college addresses and a lack of awareness when it comes to voter registration and deadlines, according to the Fair Elections Center.
Many college students are unsure of whether to vote in their hometown or on their campus, said Matt Barreto, the faculty director of the UCLA Voting Rights Project. Californians have access to many voting locations, can register to vote on Election Day and can easily request an absentee ballot, he added.
“A lot of people don’t understand just how accessible it is to vote here in California,” he said.
Barreto, a professor of political science and Chicana/o and Central American studies, added that nobody in California should worry about getting turned away at the polls, even if they have not registered. If someone is unsure of their registration status, they may cast a provisional ballot, and their vote will be verified later. Someone who is not registered may cast a conditional ballot up until the day of the election, which will be verified once the registration process is complete.
For students planning to vote by mail, it is important to plan ahead of time, said Sonni Waknin, a senior staff attorney for the UCLA Voting Rights Project, in an emailed statement. It is important for out-of-state students – especially those from states with restrictive voting laws – to check their voter registration status and their home state’s absentee ballot laws before heading out to vote, Barreto said.
All registered voters in California receive their ballot by mail. California is one of eight states with a policy mandating such – and another 29 states do not require a reason for requesting an absentee ballot. Thirteen states require excuses for absentee voters, with valid reasons for some of those states including being out of the county on Election Day, having an illness or disability or being an older adult.
A popular slogan posted to social media by politicians and voter engagement organizations on Election Day is, “If you’re in line, stay in line.” Barreto said anyone who is in line once the polls close – which will be 8 p.m. in California – can vote, and a monitor will be placed at the end of the line to ensure nobody new can get in line.
He added that in the case of issues with voting machines, voting rights advocates can request a court order to extend a poll’s hours so everyone gets a chance to cast their ballot. Waknin said in the statement that anyone who runs into an issue at a polling place should call California’s voter hotline.
Students on campus are also working to encourage their peers to go out and vote.
Neha Vijay, the co-president of BruinsVote and a fourth-year psychobiology student, said her organization aims to provide clarity on the different deadlines for voting and register students to vote in California. BruinsVote is hosting an event focused on early voting, Vijay added.
“Voting at UCLA has become registered with this picture of these very long lines at the vote centers on Election Day, and once you’re done with a long day of class, you lose the motivation to stand in such a long line to cast your ballot,” she said. “If more students were aware of how easy it is to vote without a line – if you just voted a couple days earlier, a week earlier, it would definitely resolve that challenge.”
Waknin added in the statement that students should set aside time to vote, whether they are voting in person or by mail, and familiarize themselves with voting locations before heading to cast their ballots. On UCLA’s campus, these locations include Ackerman Grand Ballroom, the Bruin Reception Room and De Neve Plaza.
Before Election Day, students should familiarize themselves with state-level offices, local offices and ballot propositions, Barreto said.
“It’s really important to take your time before the election and spend some time looking at the different ballot measures or the candidates so that you can have a good voting experience,” he said.
