2022 Midterm Voter Guide: Everything You Need to Know

Din Didic, Staff Writer

How to Register to Vote:
The State of California offers a plethora of ways for students to register to vote, including online registration

Voters may register with a physical form by picking one up at the nearest county elections office, library, Department of Motor Vehicles office, or U.S. post office. After filling out the physical form, voters can either deliver it or postmark it to their local election offices, as long as the form is submitted fifteen days prior to the election date of Nov. 8, 2022. Election office locations are detailed here

Voting registration is due on Oct. 24, fifteen days prior to the election on Nov. 8. Thus, early registration is advised. For additional information or assistance — such as ballot translations — voters are encouraged to visit the California Online Voter Registration or the California Secretary of State websites. 

How to Vote:
After registration, voters may either mail, drop off their ballot at a ballot drop-box, or vote in person on the day of the election. 

Every active California voter should have received their ballot via mail on Oct. 10. If the voter has not received the ballot or weren’t an active voter prior to this date, they may request a vote-by-mail application. Please note that the application must be provided by the relevant county election official. 

Mailing the ballot after it is postmarked can be done on the day of or prior to the election deadline on Nov. 8, in which the ballot must be mailed to the voter’s local election office. If the voter would like to drop off their mailed ballot in-person, there is an option to do so at any ballot-drop-off location. A map of nearby drop-off locations can be found here

The California State University, East Bay campus has its own drop-off location in between the New Student Union and the Old Student Union. Ballots can be dropped off at any drop-off location, as long as it is done prior to the 8 p.m. deadline on Nov. 8. Voters can track the status of their ballot by visiting the Ballot Trax website.

Voting in person can be done on Nov. 8, between the hours of 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. at any polling location, which can be found here. No form of identification is required to vote in person. While voters are not required to submit their vote-by-mail ballot in person, at a drop-off location, or a voting center, it is highly recommended to do so. 

Information for voters with disabilities can be found here.

Additional information such as education resources, voter status, and much more can be found here