If you read the last issue of The Ballot Bulletin, then you’re well aware that presidential primaries have a bunch of peculiar rules that require you as the voter to keep your registration current. 

Of course, you need to be qualified to register and vote. You can register to vote in Nevada County if all of the following are true:

• You are a citizen of the United States
• You reside in Nevada County
• You will be at least 18 years old at the time of the next election
• You are not currently incarcerated for the conviction of a felony
• You have not been found by a court to be mentally incompetent

Apart from the eligibility requirements, there are two main things that you, the informed voter, should know about how voter registration works:

First, there are several ways that a person can register to vote. 

For offices like Nevada County Elections, that means that we get voter registration data from a lot of different sources. Our office does daily voter list maintenance to help ensure that the voter rolls stay as accurate as possible. 

Sources of registration include: 

• DMV must offer voter registration services during every regular transaction (many of you may have heard of “Motor Voter” – that’s what that is). Of all the sources of registration, DMV is probably the most common.
• Public service agencies must also offer voter registration services during every regular transaction (this is also an important part of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993). 
• Same Day Registration (also called “Conditional Voter Registration”) is offered at our vote centers and allows those who missed the regular deadline to register and vote. In Nevada County, we put that ballot in an envelope so that we can verify eligibility in our office before counting the vote. 
• Online Voter Registration, which is administered by the Secretary of State, is a fast way for those with internet access to check and update their registration. 
• Voter Registration Cards, for those without internet access or those who prefer to put pen to paper. 
• Organizations and individuals, who send us paper registration forms on an as-needed basis or from “Get Out The Vote” events.

Second, you are the best and most accurate source of information about your registration status. 

Many changes to registration occur as the result of a life change–someone turns 18, moves, has a name change, or passes on. Despite all the great resources we have to keep the voter rolls as updated as possible, sometimes the data don’t come to us as quickly as we would like or as the public might expect. That’s why we rely on our voters to give us updates! 

If you turn 18 and aren’t pre-registered, then what are you waiting for? Register to vote! All the cool people are doing it…But you gotta let us know that you qualify! (How do you do that? See point #1.)

When you move, you might just complete the National Change of Address card and mail that into the post office in your new city or town. No problem! The county you’re moving into and out of will receive that information. But it sure is faster when you come to our office and make the request yourself, especially if it’s close to election time. 

When a loved one passes, it might take a while for us to get the data from the Department of Public Health. And we need proof! We can’t just cancel a registration without documented evidence. So documents like a death certificate are important for us to see so that we can cancel a voter registration (and we may be able to look it up if they passed in Nevada County). While it’s probably the last thing on your mind, we sure appreciate the opportunity to help you heal by not sending mail to someone who’s no longer with us.

Lastly: remember when we talked about residency confirmation cards and crossover cards in our last issue of The Ballot Bulletin? Well, that’s one way we get to hear directly from you about who’s registered at your address and whether voters who do not declare a party preference would like to vote for presidential candidates. All that is related to voter registration! So you see–you’re helping us greatly by reading those postcards carefully and following the instructions! THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP!!!

Did You Know?

Registration data that is received by agencies is sent to VoteCal, the statewide registration database that serves as a hub for counties to get new and updated registration and voting information. In addition to Motor Voter agencies, VoteCal collects data from sources such as the state’s online voter registration portal, the National Change of Address service, the Department of Public Health, and the Department of Corrections. All these data tell us who’s registered and who’s disqualified from registration (or re-enfranchised in some cases), and we do our best to process those updates as they come in. VoteCal also stores voter participation history for all of California’s voters and tracks voter history no matter where you move in the state.