Be on the lookout for your 2026 general election ballot, as some voters in Los Angeles County may receive their ballot in the mail as early as today, Oct. 1.
With nearly 6 million registered voters in California’s most populous county, the L.A. County registrar’s office is getting a head start on sending out ballots, just as it did during the primary election.
All county election offices are required to start mailing out ballots by Monday.
And with more than 400 ballot drop boxes throughout the county also opening on Thursday, someone who receives their ballot today could theoretically cast and return it all on the same day.
More likely though, ballots will arrive over the next several days. Voters statewide have through Nov. 3 to cast their votes.
As a reminder, voters have a few different options for returning their ballots.
You can vote by mail by placing your postage-free marked ballot in a mailbox or dropping it off at a post office; deposit it in any one of the ballot drop boxes in L.A. County; or drop it off at an in-person vote center once those sites open starting Oct. 24.
For a list of ballot drop box locations, visit lavote.gov/home/voting-elections and click on the “Ballot Drop Box” link under “Voting Options.”
A list of vote center locations will be posted by Monday at locator.lavote.gov/locations/vc.
Additionally, the L.A. County registrar’s headquarters in Norwalk will be available for early voting starting next week. The office, located at 12400 Imperial Highway, Room 3002, will be open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, excluding holidays.
Voting by mail remains the most popular method for casting one’s ballot in California. During the June primary election, approximately 82% of L.A. County voters – and 89% of voters statewide – voted by mail, according to the secretary of state’s office.
And with the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent rejection of an attempt by President Donald Trump and his administration to restrict mail ballots ahead of the midterm, California will continue to administer elections as it has in the past – which includes sending every registered voter a mail ballot and counting them as long as they’re postmarked by Election Day and are received by the local election office within seven days of the election.
“The ruling on mail-in ballots has been made. The uncertainty is behind us. Now, let the people vote! Voters will be able to cast their ballots without uncertainty, without hesitation, and without fear that their voices will be questioned or their ballots rejected,” California Secretary of State Shirley Weber said after the court decision.
Although state and many local election officials maintain that all voting options, including vote-by-mail, are safe and secure, they do encourage those who choose to vote by mail to do so early to ensure adequate time for a ballot to be postmarked and delivered.
In California, ballots that meet the postmark deadline and are received by the local election office within the timeframe allowed by state law will be counted.
But there is no guarantee that a ballot dropped in a mailbox on Election Day will get postmarked the same day – hence the urgings by election officials for voters to mail their ballots back early. It’s suggested that those who vote by mail on Election Day go inside a post office to request that a worker postmark their ballot then and there.
“Voters can expect the same secure vote-by-mail experience and ballot processing procedures used in every election,” said Mike Sanchez, spokesperson for the L.A. County registrar’s office.
That said, he suggested that anyone who wants to mail in their ballot do so by Oct. 27 — a week before Election Day — “to ensure timely delivery.”
Whatever method one chooses to cast their ballot, after voting, you can sign up to track the status of your ballot to confirm when it’s received and counted by your local election office by registering at california.ballottrax.net/voter.