Santa Barbara, California Public Records

Online registration requires a California driver's license or identification card number; those without these credentials can complete paper forms available at libraries, post offices, and the County Elections office. Automatic voter registration through the Department of Motor Vehicles registers eligible citizens when they obtain or renew licenses. The city operates under a council-manager government with a directly elected mayor and six council members elected by district. Municipal elections occur in November of odd-numbered years, with the mayor serving a two-year term and council members serving four-year staggered terms. The next municipal election is scheduled for November 2025, when the mayor's seat and council districts 2, 4, and 6 will be contested. Candidate filing information, local ballot measures, campaign finance disclosures, and voter guides are available through both the County Elections website and the City Clerk's office at www.santabarbaraca.gov/gov/clerk. Voters can locate their assigned polling place using the online lookup tool at www.sbcvote.com or by calling the Elections Division. While many California counties transitioned to the Voter's Choice Act model, the county continues using traditional neighborhood polling places while offering expanded vote-by-mail and early voting options. Every registered voter automatically receives a vote-by-mail ballot; voters can return it by mail (postmarked by Election Day), drop it at official drop box locations throughout Santa Barbara County, or vote in person at their polling place. In the November 2024 presidential election, the county recorded approximately 65% voter turnout, with roughly 170,000 ballots cast from approximately 260,000 registered voters, reflecting an engaged electorate. The November 3, 2026 general election will feature California's gubernatorial race (Governor Gavin Newsom's term expires in 2027), statewide constitutional officers including Attorney General and Secretary of State, California State Legislature seats (State Senate and Assembly districts covering the area), County Supervisor districts, countywide offices including Sheriff-Coroner and District Attorney, Superior Court judge positions, and potentially local school board and special district seats. No U.S. Senate seat from California is scheduled for the 2026 ballot as both seats were elected in 2022 and 2024. Publicly accessible election records include voter registration data (names and addresses, but not birthdates or driver's license numbers) available for purchase by qualified requesters, campaign finance reports filed by candidates and committees searchable at cal-access.sos.ca.gov, candidate statements and filing documents, and precinct-level election results published by the County Elections office. The county provides detailed election results by precinct and vote-by-mail batches on its website following each election, with historical results archived dating back multiple election cycles.