Two Weeks Away from General Election; Thousands of Ballots Still Out

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. (KEYT) – Now just two weeks away, the November 3rd General Election is in sight for many voters.

250,000 ballots went out in early October for the vote-by-mail election with several options to return them in time to be counted for this election.

The polling places and the ballot drop boxes all close at 8 p.m. on November 3rd. Ballots postmarked on or before that date and are received not later than seven days after the election will still be accepted, according to the Secretary of State.

For this election there are 18 white ballot drop boxes in the county with a list in the voter information guide and on SBCVote.com. There will be 69 polling places.

Santa Barbara County has added staff for this election and they are processing ballots coming in and answering calls at SBCVote.com.

This election ballot has two cards due to the number of races and choices locally up to the state level, along with propositions.

Voters are urged to cast their ballots early to help with the processing and faster results on election night or soon after.

All ballots are picked up daily from the ballot boxes and handled in a two-person team.

You may also check the status of your ballot or track it by visiting My Voter Status.

The county elections office can also replace a damaged or lost ballot. Only one ballot per voter will be accepted and it is tracked with a bar code.

All ballot envelopes need to be signed and that signature is verified with the elections voter registration information or other sources such as a driver's license signature for accuracy. If there are any issues with the signature or ballot, the elections office will contact the voter.

(More details, photos and videos will be added here later today.)

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