By Melody Gutierrez, San Francisco Chronicle
Lawmakers are calling for revamping the state’s voting system, which they say doesn’t take into account the busy lives of Californians, whose ability to vote on election day can be thrown off by an extra meeting at work or a sick child.
A bill introduced Wednesday in the Legislature would mail every registered voter a ballot and expand the number of days voters can cast that ballot.
Under SB450, voters could cast a ballot on election day or in the 10 days leading up to it at any voting center in their county, instead of a single polling place tied to their home address. Voters would also be able to mail in their ballot, drop it off at a voting center or submit it at a 24-hour ballot drop-off box. There would be fewer voting centers, but they would be open more days and open to anyone in the county, lawmakers said.
"This is about expanding options and conveniences for voters," said state Sen. Benjamin Allen, D-Santa Monica, who wrote the bill with state Sen. Robert Hertzberg, D-Van Nuys. "It’s about opening up the options voters have so that different kinds of voters can vote in the way they find most convenient."
Secretary of State Alex Padilla, who announced the legislation at a news conference in his office Wednesday, said California can’t ignore its low voter turnout, which was ranked 43rd nationally for the 2014 general election.
"Providing more options will help more citizens vote, despite our often busy lives," Padilla said.
The bill is modeled after a system already working for Colorado that has led to greater voter participation. In the first year Colorado increased voting options, the state saw 319,225 more ballots cast in 2013 compared with 2011, despite both elections lacking a presidential, gubernatorial or congressional race to drive people to the polls.
Last year, Colorado ranked among the top three states for voter turnout, with 54.5 percent of registered voters casting ballots in the 2014 election.
California’s 42 percent turnout in November’s general election and 25 percent turnout for the June primary were both record lows for California.
Last month, Padilla traveled to Colorado to see that state’s high-tech voting system in action during a city election in Denver. Padilla said he did not have an estimate of how much it would cost to implement the new voting system or how much the state would kick in to help counties pay for it. Padilla said counties are already needing to replace old election equipment, making it a good time to invest in technology that will lead to greater voter turnout.
Padilla, who took office in November, is also sponsoring a bill that would automatically register people to vote through the Department of Motor Vehicles and mail a ballot to every voter.
That bill, AB1462 by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, passed the Assembly last week.
©2015 the San Francisco Chronicle. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
