SAN DIEGO — With the election less than two and a half months away, San Diegans have a lot of questions about the ballot and making sure their vote counts. News 8 took viewer questions directly to the San Diego Registrar of Voters to get answers.
Ballots will not be mailed out in San Diego until Oct 5. Is there any way to get them now?
Registrar of Voters Michael Vu said this is a question his office is also getting asked a lot. He said the problem is that some political parties are still officially nominating their candidate. Once that’s completed, he has to wait for the certified list of candidates from the Secretary of State’s office. After that, Vu’s office will have to put together San Diego's local ballot and have it translated into five additional languages. Vu said those are the reasons ballots will be mailed Oct. 5, and not sooner.
I heard if you put a first-class stamp on your mail ballot before sending it in, it is then handled as first-class mail which is a faster and more secure way of it returning it. Is that true?
Vu said adding a first-class stamp will NOT get your ballot returned faster because the bulk mail rate they use is already treated by the U.S. Postal Service as first-class mail. Vu added that every active registered voter in the state will get a mail-in ballot with a pre-paid envelope to mail it back - even if you've always voted in person.
Can I still vote in person in San Diego for the Nov. 3 presidential election?
Yes! You can vote at the San Diego Registrar of Voters office in Kearny Mesa beginning Oct. 5. The office will be open Monday – Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Furthermore, from Oct. 31 to Nov. 3 you can vote at your assigned polling place. Please note, your voting place will probably be different than in the past because the county will only have 235 of them instead of the usual 1,600. Also, masks and social distancing will be required.
I have been a permanent absentee voter for years. I received a notice because of COVID-19 that I will be getting a mail-in ballot. Will I get this instead of an absentee ballot or will I get both? If I get both, which one should I use?
Vu said you will only be mailed one ballot because here in California absentee and mail-in ballots are considered two ways of saying the same thing.
