California Voter Guide

Important choices are in your hands this election. KQED will help you make an informed decision by providing you with information on every race and measure on the ballot in the Bay Area.

Important Dates

October 7

Voting begins

October 21

Online voter registration deadline

November 5

Election Day: Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. Results will be available starting 8 p.m. 

December 5

Last day for county elections officials to certify election results

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California Elections

A black and white microphone is perched on a lectern. The front panel of the lectern is colored light red with the word "Senate" printed across the front. A small blue shape is collaged behind the image.

U.S. Senate

Rep. Adam Schiff, a Los Angeles Democrat, and baseball star Steve Garvey, a Republican, compete for a six-year term.

A black and white mid-rise apartment building is pictured at three-quarters view, revealing a pink side wall with a medical cross symbol on it. A small blue shape is collaged to the left of the building.

Prop 2: School Bond

Should California issue $10 billion in bonds to help build or upgrade educational facilities?

A black and white mid-rise apartment building is pictured at three-quarters view, revealing a pink side wall with a medical cross symbol on it. A small blue shape is collaged to the left of the building.

Prop 3: Same-Sex Marriage

Should marriage rights for same-sex couples be enshrined in the state constitution?

A black and white mid-rise apartment building is pictured at three-quarters view, revealing a pink side wall with a medical cross symbol on it. A small blue shape is collaged to the left of the building.

Prop 4: Climate Bond

Should California issue $10 billion in bonds to fund various climate- and environment-related projects?

A black and white mid-rise apartment building is pictured at three-quarters view, revealing a pink side wall with a medical cross symbol on it. A small blue shape is collaged to the left of the building.

Prop 5: Housing Votes

Should California reduce the vote threshold needed to pass certain local bonds for affordable housing and public infrastructure projects?

A black and white mid-rise apartment building is pictured at three-quarters view, revealing a pink side wall with a medical cross symbol on it. A small blue shape is collaged to the left of the building.

Prop 6: Prison Labor

Should California ban involuntary servitude in prisons and jails?

A black and white mid-rise apartment building is pictured at three-quarters view, revealing a pink side wall with a medical cross symbol on it. A small blue shape is collaged to the left of the building.

Prop 32: Minimum Wage

Should all California employees earn at least $18 per hour by Jan. 1, 2026?

A black and white mid-rise apartment building is pictured at three-quarters view, revealing a pink side wall with a medical cross symbol on it. A small blue shape is collaged to the left of the building.

Prop 33: Rent Control

Should California remove limits on the ability of cities to impose rent control policies capping annual rent increases?

A black and white mid-rise apartment building is pictured at three-quarters view, revealing a pink side wall with a medical cross symbol on it. A small blue shape is collaged to the left of the building.

Prop 34: Prescription Drug Spending

Should California restrict how certain health care providers can spend revenue from prescription drug sales?

A black and white mid-rise apartment building is pictured at three-quarters view, revealing a pink side wall with a medical cross symbol on it. A small blue shape is collaged to the left of the building.

Prop 35: Medi-Cal Funding

Should California make permanent an existing tax on health insurance companies and restrict how those funds can be used?

A black and white mid-rise apartment building is pictured at three-quarters view, revealing a pink side wall with a medical cross symbol on it. A small blue shape is collaged to the left of the building.

Prop 36: Criminal Penalties

Should California roll back past reforms and make it easier to charge people with felony crimes and send them to jail or prison if they repeatedly shoplift, or possess some drugs, including fentanyl and methamphetamine?

Bay Area Elections

A raising crane sits next to stacks of shipping containers in the Port of Oakland. The image is in black and white and contained in a light blue circle.

Alameda County

Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price and Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao are both facing recall elections.

Two refinery drums sit amongst trees in the hills of Contra Costa County. The image is in black and white and contained in a light blue circle.

Contra Costa County

Competitive elections for county supervisor and state Legislature are on the ballot. 

A boardwalk passes by a large rock formation along the Pacific coast in Marin County. The image is in black and white and contained in a light blue circle.

Marin County

There’s an open seat on the Board of Supervisors, and rent protection measures on the ballot in multiple cities.

A cluster of grapes hangs from a vineyard in Napa County. The image is in black and white and contained in a light blue circle.

Napa County

Voters will pick a new state senator and consider extending a sales tax to fund the Napa Valley Transportation Authority.

The southern tower of the Golden Gate Bridge is viewed from the San Francisco shore. The image is in black and white and contained in a light blue circle.

San Francisco

The mayor’s office and six supervisor seats are up for grabs — along with dueling measures to reform city commissions.

A span of the San Mateo Bridge is shown above still bay waters. The image is in black and white and contained in a light blue circle.

San Mateo County

Voters in East Palo Alto, Menlo Park and Redwood City will pick a new county supervisor.

Hangar One sits in Moffett Field in Santa Clara County. The image is in black and white and contained in a light blue circle.

Santa Clara County

Democrats Sam Liccardo and Evan Low compete for a seat in Congress, and voters pick two new county supervisors.

Wind turbines rise above agricultural hills in Solano County. The image is in black and white and contained in a light blue circle.

Solano County

Voters will pick a new state senator and weigh in on dozens of local elections.

Rows of vineyards cover a hillside in Sonoma County. The image is in black and white and contained in a light blue circle.

Sonoma County

A controversial measure to ban certain farms goes before Sonoma voters.

Presidential Election

President

Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump compete for California’s 54 electoral votes.

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Voting FAQ

How can I make sure I’m registered to vote?

You can check your voter registration status at voterstatus.sos.ca.gov. Oct. 21 is the last day you can register to vote online at registertovote.ca.gov. After that, you can still register in person at your county elections office or an open voting location via Same Day Registration (also called conditional registration) up until when polls close at 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 5.

Do I have to request a mail-in ballot?

No — every registered voter in California will automatically receive a ballot in the mail. You can use that ballot to cast your vote (see below for where to return it when you’re done) or you can forget that ballot and vote in-person. The one that arrived in the mail will be canceled.

My mail-in ballot hasn’t arrived yet. Should I worry?

Counties will start mailing ballots to residents in early October, and their deadline to start doing that is Oct. 7. You can use the state’s Where’s My Ballot tool to see if your ballot has been sent out. If it’s getting closer to Election Day and your ballot still hasn’t arrived, use voterstatus.sos.ca.gov to check that your voter registration is up-to-date with your current address — Oct. 21 is your deadline to update those details online and receive a replacement ballot. If your details are correct but your ballot is still missing, you can call to request a new ballot as long as it’s more than six days before Election Day. After that, you can go to your county elections office in person and request one at the counter.

When voting for president, do I have to vote for the party I’m registered with?

In a general election, you can vote for any candidate — not just the candidate with the party you’re registered with. Unlike in the primary elections earlier this year, this means that even if you’re a registered Republican, you can vote for the Democratic candidate, or vice versa.

How do I return my ballot?

Ballots can be returned through the Postal Service (the return postage is already paid) or dropped off at a voting location or in a ballot drop box. Keep in mind that the Postal Service must postmark your ballot envelope by the end of Election Day for your vote to count — and the last collection at many mailboxes is 5 p.m. If it's getting late in the day on November 5, you might consider using a county drop box instead of a USPS mailbox, to make sure you don’t miss the last collection.

What if I make a mistake on my ballot?

Some counties will provide written instructions on how to correct a mistake on your ballot, such as voting for a candidate you didn't intend to. But if you clearly mark your intended choice — say, by x-ing out your mistake — your vote can still be counted.

What if I made a mistake with my ballot signature?

Your ballot will not be counted if the envelope is unsigned or if the signature doesn't match the signature in your voter registration file. Typically, the signature on file is the same as the signature pictured on the front of your driver's license or state ID. County election officials can reach out to you to correct a missing or mismatched signature in order to count your ballot, even after Election Day.

How do I track my ballot once I’ve returned it?

All registered voters in California can sign up for an online tool to track the status of their mail-in ballots for the November general election. "Where's My Ballot?" provides automated notifications via email, text or phone when your county elections offices have mailed out your ballot — and when your completed ballot has been received and processed.

Can I still vote in-person?

Yes. In Contra Costa, San Francisco and Solano counties, you will be assigned to a specific location for in-person voting, although some sites will be open for early in-person voting for all voters. In Alameda, Marin, Napa, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Sonoma counties — which have adopted the Voters Choice act — you can cast your ballot at any vote center in the county.

The KQED 2024 Voter Guide was made by our news and product teams comprised of Erin Baldassari, Adhiti Bandlamudi, Bryan Bindloss, Dan Brekke, Carlos Cabrera-Lomelí, Jason Cater, Jason Chee, Teresa Cho, Kevin Cooke, Azul Dahlstrom-Eckman, Duke Fan, Annelise Finney, Joseph Geha, Pamela Gilmour, Jaime Guardado, Matthew Green, Alex Hall, Tyche Hendricks, Farida Jhabvala Romero, Marlon Johnson, Sydney Johnson, Kervy Justo Robles, Sahila Jorapur, Erika Kelly, Nisa Khan, Marisa Lagos, Juan Carlos Lara, Kimberly Low, Guy Marzorati, Lesley McClurg, Gabe Meline, Daisy Nguyen, Emiko Oda, Attila Pelit, Noah Piper, Vanessa Rancaño, Ezra David Romero, Caroline Sarkki, Scott Shafer, Julie Small, Molly Solomon, Ki Sung, Ethan Toven-Lindsey, and Molly Wu. We also received contributions from California Local News Fellows Sebastian Miño-Bucheli of Coastside News and Luis Melecio-Zambrano of The Mercury News.

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Have a correction or feedback? Contact voterguide@kqed.org.