Ballots to be mailed out next week for March Presidential Primary Election

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Vote-by-mail ballots for the March 5 Presidential Primary election, will begin going out Feb. 5 to all active, registered voters in Sonoma County, Deva Marie Proto, Sonoma County Registrar of Voters, announced today. Voters should expect to receive them within 10 days.

Also beginning Monday, any voter who cannot or does not want to wait to receive their ballot in the mail may instead pick up a vote-by-mail ballot at the Sonoma County Registrar of Voters Office at 435 Fiscal Drive in Santa Rosa. Any voter can also authorize somebody else to pick up a vote-by-mail ballot for them by filling out an application to provide vote-by-mail ballot to representative.

There are three main ways a voter application to provide vote-by-mail ballot to representative can return their vote-by-mail ballot:

1. Send it back in the mail. In order to count, it must be postmarked on or before Election Day.
2. Drop it in one of 21 official ballot drop boxes throughout the county. The drop boxes will be open 24/7 beginning Feb. 6 and closes at 8 p.m. on Election Day.
3. Drop it off at any open vote center beginning later this month.

Voters who want to track the status of their vote-by-mail ballots by email, text or voice call can sign up to do so at WheresMyBallot.sos.ca.gov. 

Voters who do not want to vote by mail can vote in person at a vote center instead. A total of seven vote centers will be open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Feb. 24 to March 4. An additional 24 vote centers (for a total of 31) will be open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., March 2 to March 4. On Election Day, all 31 vote centers will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

For a list and map of all vote centers and official ballot drop boxes, including addresses and dates/times they will be open, visit the Sonoma County Registrar of Voters homepage and click on the list of official ballot drop boxes and vote centers link under the “March 2024 Presidential Primary Election” heading (or click here to go to the page directly).

The March 5 Presidential Primary election will be the first presidential election in Sonoma County to be conducted under the Voter’s Choice Act election model. This model, which Sonoma County implemented in 2022, offers voters more flexibility regarding when, where and how to cast their ballots. Counties conducting elections under this model must:

• Have at least one official ballot drop box per 15,000 registered voters open daily starting no later than 28 days before Election Day.
• Utilize vote centers instead of traditional polling places. Vote centers offer several major advantages over polling places:
  • They are usually open multiple days, not just on Election Day (with the exception of small special elections).
  • Properly registered voters in the county can cast a regular ballot at whichever vote center is most convenient for them; they do not have to go to a preassigned location.
  • They offer expanded voter services, including conditional (i.e., same-day) voter registration, voter address changes, language assistance, curbside voting and accessible ballot marking devices for voters with disabilities or those who prefer to use them.
• Have at least one vote center per 50,000 registered voters open daily starting no later than 10 days before Election Day.
• Have at least one vote center per 10,000 registered voters open daily starting no later than three days before Election Day.

For more information about the Voter’s Choice Act, visit the Sonoma County Registrar of Voters homepage and click on the Voter’s Choice Act option in the menu at the left.

The Sonoma County Registrar of Voters Office is located at 435 Fiscal Drive in Santa Rosa. Until further notice, the Office will be open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (excluding county holidays). In addition, the Office will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. the two weekends prior to Election Day (Feb. 24-25, March 2-3) and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day itself. For more information, please visit SoCoVotes.com, call (707) 565-6800 (Toll-Free: [800] 750-VOTE [8683]; TDD: [800] 565-6888), email rov-info@sonoma-county.org, or visit the office in person.

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Contact Information:
Wendy Hudson
Chief Deputy Registrar of Voters
Wendy.Hudson@sonoma-county.org
(707) 565-6800

­­Media Contact:
Gina Stocker
Communications Specialist
publicaffairs@sonoma-county.org
(707) 565-3040
575 Administration Drive, Suite 104A
Santa Rosa, CA 95403