Summer draws to a close

School’s back in session, as evidenced by the sudden surge in traffic on our roadways.  And with the return of students to their schools comes the beginning of a new application period for democracyLIVE!, the San Mateo County student poll worker program.

Applications are available online at www.shapethefuture.org/democracylive or from high school government/history teachers.  As a reminder, the program is open to any high school student that meets the following eligibility requirements:

1) at least 16 years old on Election Day;
2) a U.S. Citizen;
3) a high school or college student with 2.5 GPA or better;
4) a student or resident of San Mateo County

Students must receive written approval from their teachers and parents/guardians to participate in this program.

New Registration Cards to Curb Confusion

Are you registered as a nonpartisan or an Independent?  Be careful with this question, because there are two totally different answers.

A new voter registration card is being phased in as the current supply dwindles in an effort to curb party affiliation confusion.  According to an article published yesterday by the AP, “Secretary of State Debra Bowen says some voters complained that they accidentally registered with the American Independent Party when they intended to register as nonpartisan.”  You can take a look at a sample of the new voter registration card by clicking here.

So what’s the difference between the two answers?  Well, if you don’t want to register with a specific party, then you have to choose the “Decline to State” option on the voter registration card.  Selecting this option means that you are nonpartisan; you won’t be affiliated with a political party.  Our records show that 82,805 voters are registered as Decline to State in San Mateo County as of July 18.

If you happen to select “American Independent,” you are actually officially registering to be affiliated with the American Independent Party.

According to the American Independent party statement in the Easy Voter Guide, a nonpartisan publication designed to provide quick elections information in a variety of languages, the party “stands for traditional moral values and the God-given rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.  This party believes government should uphold the United States Constitution, including protection of life and property, and provide a strong national defense, free of waste.”  The top priorities, as listed in the Easy Voter Guide, are to end illegal immigration, balance the state budget, and address levee repairs and state water problems.

To help you learn more about the different political parties, we’ve put together an excerpt of this guide and published it on Shape The Future.  You can download the political party excerpt by clicking here.

Bottom line:  When you register, or re-register, before October 20 to vote in the November Presidential General election, make sure to fill out your voter registration card carefully.

Office Buzzing with Activity

The “brrng brrng!” and “ding ding!” of phone calls and emails fill our office, which has been silenced into a quiet buzz in anticipation of the upcoming November Presidential Election.

Right now, some important items on our agenda include 1) scheduling, 2) candidate filing, 3) voter registration, and 4) Sample Ballot & Voter Information Pamphlet preparation.

Improvement is Ongoing

Elections are fluid, with each part of the preparation process continually being refined to improve overall efficiency while maintaining integrity of the vote.  While no process is perfect, we constantly strive to raise the bar with every election review.  And who better to help improve Elections procedures than the people who worked with these procedures daily?

To celebrate the accomplishment of five (yes, FIVE) successfully conducted elections beginning with the November 2007 Consolidated Municipal School District election through the June 2008 Statewide Direct Primary election, the Elections Office held a post-election bbq (well, buffet would probably be a better term).

RaceTracker is a Hit

The best way to measure success of a web site or other internet tool is to survey the rate of return on investment.  For some businesses, this measure may be through rate of online sales, or number of leads generated through the web.  For the San Mateo County RaceTracker, our measure of success is the number of site hits and return visitors.

From the looks of it, you like RaceTracker.

During the 10 days following the Feb. 5 Presidential Primary Election, 942 visitors checked out the RaceTracker with a total of 1173 visits.  During the same time frame following the June 3 Statewide Direct Primary, the number of visits nearly tripled, topping out at 3312.

The number of visitors grew to 1167, but that just means that more people were returning to the Web site instead of just checking it out and not coming back.

Return visits are always a good thing.  It means that visitors find the site’s information useful and that the content is holding a visitor’s attention.

That’s our goal: to provide useful and informative content that also allows the public the opportunity to learn and understand more about the elections and voting process.

Worth a Thousand Words

Election Day is in full swing, but what did it take to get to this point in the process? It’s been awhile since we’ve been able to put up a thousand words for you, so we thought we’d try something a bit different.

Sometimes, there is no better way of explaining a process than using imagery rather than words. What started out as a long blog post has now become a full-fledged feature on the Elections Office website. Over the past few months, we’ve been taking pictures of every step of the elections process. We really think you’ll like what you see.

Visit the new Gallery at http://stage.shapethefuture.org/elections/galleries/elections_journey.asp.

The Day Before Tomorrow

Today isn’t just Monday; it’s the day before Election Day. Before you head out to the polls to vote in the June 3 Statewide Direct Primary Election tomorrow, here are some friendly tips to help make sure you have a smooth voting experience.

By now, you’ve probably already made sure that you’re registered to vote. You can verify your registration status by visiting our website at www.shapethefuture.org.

Second, confirm your polling place address! Polling places can and do change periodically, so make sure you know where you’re supposed to go before you head out. There are three ways to check your polling place location:

• The back cover of the Sample Ballot & Official Voter Information Guide mailed to voters;
• The “Find My Ballot” feature on the home page of Smart Voter, the Web site of the League of Women Voters, at www.smartvoter.org;
• Follow the online voter registration verification steps above at www.shapethefuture.org/voters/voter_status.asp. Polling place information is also displayed when registration is verified.

Third, make sure you know how and what to vote. The “how” is easy. Our website has a microsite dedicated to instructing the public on the eSlate electronic voting machines. This history of the machines, step by step instructions on how to vote on them, and a short video presentation are all available online to help you understand the eSlates. You can visit www.shapethefuture.org/eslate to check out the microsite.

If you don’t want to vote on the eSlate, vote paper. Paper ballots will be available at the polling places, and Vote by Mail ballots will be accepted at the polling place if you didn’t have time to mail it before.

“We want voters to be pro-active,” said San Mateo County Chief Elections Officer Warren Slocum. “If voters take a few minutes to verify their information and learn how to cast a ballot, polling place operations will run more smoothly, every vote will count and we can limit confusion, long lines and errors.”

The “what” part of this third step is a little more involved. The Sample Ballot you received in the mail has information about the propositions and measures applicable to your voting precinct. If you can’t find your Sample Ballot, we also have them posted online at http://www.shapethefuture.org/elections/June2008/eng_sampleballots.asp. A number of excellent nonpartisan resources are available to help voters make informed choices. We recommend:

• The Secretary of State’s Official Voter Information Guide – voterguide.sos.ca.gov
• The Easy Voter Guide – www.easyvoter.org
• Smart Voter, from the League of Women Voters – www.smartvoter.org

Take time to read your options and cast an informed vote. Don’t forget – you don’t have to mark every contest to vote.

“Come prepared—do your homework!” Slocum said. “Mark your sample ballot and bring it to the polls with you. It will save you time and shorten the wait for your fellow citizens.”

Last tip – bring identification if you’re a first-time voter. In accordance with California law, first-time voters will be required to show identification at the polling place on Election Day. There are 30 acceptable forms of identification, which are listed on the Elections website at www.shapethefuture.org/elections/law_changes.asp.

Still have questions? Don’t hesitate to visit www.shapethefuture.org for answers, or contact us directly at (650) 312-5222 or registrar@smcare.org.

You’re Invited to Election Central

For just about every Election, San Mateo County has hosted an “Election Central” where we distribute election results as we converse among a spread of food, television commentary, and online ballot tracking.

The Statewide Direct Primary Election will be no exception. Held at The Rotunda, located on the first floor of 555 County Center in Redwood City, our doors will once again be open for Election Central. We invite you to join us on June 3 to celebrate an evening of election results excitement.

Election Central begins at 7:30 p.m. , with the distribution of results beginning at 8:05 p.m. The results schedule is below.

8:05 p.m. – Vote by Mail Results

8:30 p.m. – Mail ballot Precinct Results
9:00 p.m. – Universal Voting Center Results
9:30 p.m. – Precinct Results

Precinct Results will continue to be released every half hour after 9:30 p.m. until all the precinct results are in.

Last Day to Request Vote by Mail Ballot

We’re in the thick of the Elections year and California’s political climate is only going to get hotter. Not relegated to a season anymore, the sheer quantity of elections being held in 2008 coupled with the rising costs of producing elections material results in staggering dollar amounts. The price tag on April’s Special Congressional Primary Election was a hard number to swallow, but there was an important lesson to be learned: voting by mail can save a ton of money.

Today is the last day to request a Vote by Mail ballot for the June 3 Statewide Direct Primary Election, so make sure to contact the Elections Office right away! There are a couple ways to get your request in for your Vote by Mail ballot.

1) Go online to http://www.shapethefuture.org/apps/vabr/default.asp and submit an electronic application.

2) Take your Sample Ballot, rip off the back cover, fill out the bottom portion, and fax it to (650) 312-5348.

But whatever you do, don’t mail it! The Elections Office must receive your application today, meaning (once again) postmarks don’t count.

Still have questions? Call the Registration & Elections Division at
(650) 312-5222 for answers!

Decline to State voters have a choice to make

With roughly over 82,000 Decline to State voters on the San Mateo County rolls, many County residents are weighing their partisan choices for the upcoming June 3 Statewide Direct Primary Election.

In California, it is up to each qualified political party to decide if they will allow Decline to State voters to participate in their primary. Decline to State voters, also known as independent or nonpartisan, are those who chose not to affiliate with any political party when they registered to vote. In this Election, the American Independent, Democratic, and Republican parties are allowing Decline to State voters the option to vote in their primaries.

There is still almost a week to notify the Elections Office of your choice to vote a partisan ballot. The deadline for Decline to State voters to request a partisan ballot by mail is Tues., May 27.

After the deadline, partisan ballots can still be requested in person. To exercise this option, Decline to State voters must go to one of the polling places on Election Day or to one of the Elections Offices.

Vote by Mail voters can exchange the partisan ballot that was mailed to them for an American Independent, Democratic, or Republican ballot at the polls or the Elections Offices. However, if the Vote by Mail ballot was lost or destroyed, voters can still cast a provisional ballot.

“Once we verify their eligibility and that this is the only ballot they have voted, their ballot will be counted,” explained Warren Slocum, Chief Elections Officer for San Mateo County.

Copies of the Sample Ballot and Voter Information Pamphlets in English, Chinese, and Spanish can be found on the Elections Web site at http://www.shapethefuture.org/elections/June2008/eng_sampleballots.asp.

Voters with questions regarding Decline to State voting options may call the Elections Office at (650) 312-5222, email registrar@smcare.org or visit our Web site at www.shapethefuture.org.