Little River, California Public Records

Regular office hours run Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, with extended hours before major elections. California residents can register to vote online at https://registertovote.ca.gov, the official Secretary of State portal. The process requires a California driver's license or ID card number, the last four digits of a Social Security number, and date of birth. Registration must be completed 15 days before Election Day, though California's conditional voter registration allows eligible voters to register and cast provisional ballots up through Election Day at vote centers and county elections offices. Basic eligibility requires U.S. Citizenship, California residency, being at least 18 years old on Election Day, and not currently serving a state prison term for a felony conviction. Every registered voter automatically receives a vote-by-mail ballot for each election under California law, typically mailed 29 days before Election Day. As an unincorporated community, Little River has no municipal government and therefore no city council or mayoral races. Instead, residents vote for the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors, with the area falling within District 5. Supervisor elections occur in even-numbered years on a non-partisan basis. Local voters also participate in elections for special districts including Mendocino Coast Healthcare District, Mendocino Coast Recreation and Park District, and Mendocino-Lake Community College District. Residents can locate their assigned polling place and vote center by visiting https://www.mendocinocounty.org/government/assessor-recorder-county-clerk/elections or using the statewide tool at https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/polling-place. The county has adopted the Voter's Choice Act model, replacing traditional neighborhood polling places with fewer but larger vote centers that open for multiple days before Election Day and allow any county voter to cast a ballot at any location. The county trends Democratic in most statewide contests but sees competitive races at the local level. The ballot will include all statewide constitutional offices, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, Controller, Treasurer, Insurance Commissioner, and Superintendent of Public Instruction, along with all 80 State Assembly seats, 20 of the 40 State Senate seats, and numerous statewide propositions. No U.S. Locally, Mendocino County voters will elect the District Attorney, Sheriff-Coroner, Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk, Auditor-Controller, and Treasurer-Tax Collector, along with certain County Supervisor districts depending on the rotation. California operates as a universal vote-by-mail state, with every registered voter automatically receiving a ballot approximately 29 days before each election. Ballots can be returned by mail (postage-paid, must be postmarked by Election Day), dropped in official ballot drop boxes throughout Mendocino County, or delivered in person to any vote center or the Elections Office in Ukiah. Voters can track their ballot status online at https://california.ballottrax.net. Election records available to the public in California include the voter registration roll (with names and addresses but excluding birthdates, driver's license numbers, and other confidential information), precinct-level results, candidate filing documents and statements, campaign finance reports filed with the Mendocino County Elections Office for local candidates and the California Fair Political Practices Commission for state candidates, and initiative or referendum petition signatures. These records can be requested from the Mendocino County Elections Office under the California Public Records Act. Detailed precinct results for past elections are posted at https://www.mendocinocounty.org/government/assessor-recorder-county-clerk/elections following certification.