REGISTER TO VOTE

In order to vote in California, you must meet eligibility requirements and you must register. The deadline to register to vote for any election is 11:59:59 p.m. Pacific Time on the 15th calendar day before the election. If you submit an application after this time, your application will still be processed for future elections and you may vote a conditional provisional ballot at the Elections office for the current election.

To register to vote, you must be:

• A United States citizen and a resident of California,

• 18 years old or older on Election Day,

• Not currently serving a state or federal prison term for the conviction of a felony, and

• Not currently found mentally incompetent to vote by a court (for more information, please see Voting Rights: Persons Subject to Conservatorship).

Update Registration Information

To update your voter information, simply re-register online or complete a new registration form.  You will want to update your information if:

• Your address (residential or mailing) has changed;

• You changed your signature;

• You have changed your name; or

• You would like to change your political party preference

Voter registration forms are available at:

The Monterey County Elections Department, 1441 Schilling Place - North Building, Salinas, CA and various locations throughout the county including libraries, post offices, city and county offices, DMV, and other public buildings. Forms may be mailed or delivered. Postage is pre-paid.

Voter Registration - Online Form

Important: The online voter registration form requires you to have a signature on file with the Department of Motor Vehicles.  If you do not, you must print the form and return the signed document to the Elections office in order for you to be registered to vote. 

Deadline to Register

The deadline to register to vote is 15 days before Election Day. If you miss the deadline, you may still register and vote a conditional provisional ballot at the Elections office up until Election Day. 

Military and Overseas Voters

Military and overseas voters are United States citizens who are members of the Uniformed Services (on active duty) and their eligible dependents, members of the Merchant Marines and their eligible dependents, commissioned corps of the Public Health Service, commissioned corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or United States citizens residing outside the United States. To apply to register to vote, receive your elections materials, and vote, you must apply for a special vote by mail (absentee) ballot by filling out the Federal Post Card Application. Visit the Federal Voting Assistance Program website at

https://www.fvap.gov/military-voter/overview 

Statement of permissible uses of personal information.

California Election Code 2157.2
Information on your voter registration affidavit will be used by elections officials to send you official election information, such as the location of your polling place and the issues and candidates that will appear on the ballot. Commercial use of voter registration is prohibited by law and is a misdemeanor. Voter information may be provided to a candidate for office, a ballot measure committee, or other persons for election, scholarly, journalistic, political, or governmental purposes, as determined by the Secretary of State. Driver's license and Social Security numbers, or your signature as shown on your voter registration card, cannot be released for these purposes. If you have any questions about the use of voter information or wish to report suspected misuse of such information, please call the Secretary of State's Voter Hotline (1-800-345-8683).

Certain voters facing life-threatening situations may qualify for confidential voter status. For more information, please contact the Secretary of State's Safe At Home program or visit the Secretary of State's website at www.sos.ca.gov.

(Added by Stats. 2005, c. 726, Sec. 4)