Ballots and voting information packets for the Nov. 4 special statewide election are in the mail for San Benito County’s 37,000-plus registered voters.
Early voting started Oct. 6. Voters can begin casting their ballots by mail; 24-hour drop box; or in person at one of two San Benito County voting centers, according to elections officials.
In a video message posted to the county’s social media pages, San Benito County Registrar of Voters Francisco Diaz said people can vote in person at the Election Department Vote Center starting Oct. 6. The vote center, located at 1601 Lana Way, will be open 9am-5pm Monday-Friday Oct. 6-24; and every day including weekends Oct. 25-Nov. 3, also from 9am-5pm.
A second county vote center will be open Nov. 1-3 at the Odd Fellows (IOOF) hall, located at 330 Fourth Street in Hollister, from 9am-5pm.
Both the elections department and Odd Fellows vote centers will be open 7am-8pm on the Nov. 4 election day.
Ballots can also be sent by mail, or dropped off at one of four secure ballot drop boxes as of Oct. 6. Drop boxes are located at the county library, Community Food Bank on San Felipe Road, Ridgemark office parking lot and Windmill Shopping Center in San Juan Bautista.
Diaz said for the Nov. 4 election, the county is operating the limited number of vote centers and drop boxes due to funding shortfalls from the state and county.
The Nov. 4 ballot in San Benito County contains only a “Yes” or “No” choice on California Proposition 50. The statewide redistricting measure would authorize temporary changes to California’s congressional district maps.
Sponsored by Gov. Gavin Newsom and state representatives from the Democratic Party, the proposition is a response to Texas’ redistricting earlier this year which was broadly criticized as partisan or gerrymandering.
