Polling places open for in-person voting throughout Santa Barbara County

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Two days away from one the most anticipated elections ever, in-person polling began this weekend throughout Santa Barbara County.

"Usually elections are on election day, now we have a four-day opportunity to vote in-person," said the County Registrar of Voters Joseph Holland.

This year, all California residents received a ballot in the mail and well over 50% of registered voters took advantage by casting theirs early. However, some people still prefer to vote in-person.

"I felt that coming in person was the way to go and voting is happening in two days and I felt like coming early," said Santa Barbara voter Randy Brown.

"People are like oh there's this huge line or whatever and no. This is very civil I like how it's early voting," voter Michelle Nephew said.

All 35 in-person polling sites look a little different due to the pandemic, with plexiglass between booths and plenty of PPE available.

"So you need to have a mask to come in, if you don't have a mask we'll give you a mask," said Holland.

Voting booths are spaced six feet apart and constantly cleaned.

"Everything is sanitized, we got the face guards, you got the distance, they even sanitize right after you like leave your station," said Nephew.

Poll workers are also being paid double the amount their counterparts were during the primary election in March.

Many political rallies have also been taking place over the weekend near newly opened polling places.

When asked if this violates any electioneering laws, Holland explained, "Folks are allowed to rally, you just cannot have any electioneering within 100-feet of a polling place."

A Santa Maria area voter sent a tip to our partners at ProPublica reporting possible voter suppression on Saturday.

The man claimed a poll worker told him he wasn't registered and tried to prevent him from utilizing same-day registration, which is legal in California. The man claimed the polling worker eventually did allow him to register and vote.

"We're making it very easy to vote so nobody should be turned away from the polls for any reason," Holland said in response.

This story was produced in part with the help of tips reported through ProPublica’s Electionland project. If you experience or witness a problem voting, please let us know.

Polling places will be open on Monday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Election Day from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

To find a polling site near you, visit the County Elections Division website here. A full list of polling places should have also been included with your mail-in ballot.