SLO County Moves Up Ballot Mailing & Drop Box Openings
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (KEYT) - The San Luis Obispo Elections Office said Tuesday it will mail ballots for the upcoming General Election, as well as open ballot drop boxes earlier than expected.
In a release, the SLO County Elections Office said it has completed preparations ahead of schedule, allowing ballots and County Voter Information Guides to be delivered to the U.S. Postal Service’s Goleta
processing facility on Wednesday, September 30.
The office said The Elections Office expects USPS to begin sending the materials to voters that same day.
In addition, the Elections Office is also moving up the opening of its 18 official ballot drop boxes to Thursday, Oct. 1.
Under the previous timeline, the boxes had previously been scheduled to open October 5 and 6, depending on the operating days of individual locations.
"We’re pleased to be able to get ballots into voters’ hands a little earlier this election,” said San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder Elaina Cano said in a release. "Opening our official drop boxes at the same time means voters who are ready to make their choices can return their ballots right away using a secure County ballot drop box."
The Elections Office is encouraging voters to return their ballots as soon as they can since ballots that arrive early before Election Day will help speed up the counting process.
"Ballots mailed at the last minute risk getting a late postmark or arriving past the deadline, and we
can’t county those," said Cano. "Voting early also means your ballot will be included in that first
batch of Election Night results and will speed up the counting process overall."
With the election soon approaching, the Clerk-Recorder office will adjust its hours of operations.
Beginning Monday, Oct. 5, the office will close to the public at 4 p.m. each weekday. Election services, however, will remain available.
The office said a dedicated Elections service window at the San Luis Obispo office will be open from 8
a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, beginning Oct. 5 and continuing through the
completion of the official election canvass in late November.
The Elections Office will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3.
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