Saratoga, California Public Records

The standard registration deadline falls 15 days before Election Day, though California's conditional voter registration allows eligible citizens to register and vote provisionally through Election Day itself at designated locations. Voters must be U.S. Citizens, California residents, at least 18 years old by Election Day, and not currently serving a state prison sentence for a felony conviction. No documentary proof of citizenship is required, though applicants may need to provide a California driver's license or ID number, or the last four digits of a Social Security number. The city holds municipal elections for City Council seats and occasional local ballot measures. These contests occur in November of even-numbered years, consolidated with statewide general elections. Rather than being directly elected, the mayor is selected by council members from among themselves on a rotating basis. Candidate information, local measures, and sample ballots are available through the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters and at https://www.saratoga.ca.us. Voters can locate their assigned polling place by visiting https://www.sccvote.org and using the online lookup tool, which requires a home address. As a Voter's Choice Act county, Santa Clara automatically sends vote-by-mail ballots to all registered voters, who can return them by postage-paid mail, deposit them at any official drop box, or vote in person at any county vote center during the early voting period or on Election Day. Public election records in California include voter registration lists available for official political purposes, campaign finance reports filed with the California Fair Political Practices Commission and viewable at http://www.fppc.ca.gov, candidate statements and filings available from the Registrar, and precinct-level results published after certification. Individual voter histories showing whether someone voted are public, but actual ballot choices remain confidential. Official results and detailed statistics are available at https://www.sccvote.org. Specific county and local measures will be determined closer to the election date. To request an absentee or vote-by-mail ballot, voters can apply online at https://www.sccvote.org, by mail, or by phone. As of 2022, all registered California voters automatically receive a vote-by-mail ballot for every election, which can be returned by mail with no postage required, deposited at an official drop box, or brought to any vote center.