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AP19:033

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 10, 2019
CONTACT:
SOS Press Office
(916) 653-6575

Santa Clara County Adopts Voter’s Choice Act for 2020 Elections; Nearly Half of California Voters will Enjoy More Flexibility in When, Where, and How They Can Vote

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CA – Yesterday evening, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to adopt the Voter’s Choice Act for the 2020 elections. Under this modern election model, every registered voter in the county will automatically receive their ballot by mail and have options for how to return their ballot, by mail, to any ballot drop box in the county, or at any vote center in the county convenient to them. Santa Clara becomes the tenth county to adopt the Voter’s Choice Act.

“In 2020, nearly half of California voters will enjoy more options for when, where, and how to cast their ballots through the Voter’s Choice Act,” said Secretary of State Alex Padilla. “Voter-centric elections rooted in community engagement makes our democracy stronger. I look forward to working with elections officials, citizens, and civic organizations in Santa Clara County to deliver a modern voting experience.”

The ten counties implementing the Voter’s Choice Act for 2020 are: Fresno, Los Angeles, Madera, Mariposa, Orange, Napa, Nevada, Sacramento, San Mateo, and Santa Clara. These counties are home to 48.8% of the state’s voters.

The Voters Choice Act (SB 450), sponsored by California Secretary of State Alex Padilla, is a landmark election reform measure signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown in 2016. Five California counties — Madera, Napa, Nevada, Sacramento, and San Mateo — implemented this new model of conducting elections for the first time in 2018. All five counties exceeded the November 2018 statewide turnout rate of 64.5% 

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