Californians Have Hours Left to Cast 2026 Midterm Ballots

Californians who have not yet voted in the 2026 midterm elections have until 8 p.m. today to cast their ballots. The state offers several methods for voting, including in-person centers, dropboxes, and mail, though officials urge voters to use the first two options to avoid processing delays.

In Los Angeles and Orange counties, vote centers operate from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voters can go to any center within their county. Those who arrive before the 8 p.m. cutoff can vote even if they finish after the deadline. Individuals arriving after 8 p.m. will be turned away.

Voters can also drop off marked ballots in a dropbox by 8 p.m. The envelope must be signed and dated. For mail-in voting, the ballot must be postmarked today and received by the local election office within seven days. The attorney general's office reported that 148,241 mail ballots were rejected in the June primary. Nearly two-thirds of those rejections occurred because ballots were postmarked after Election Day or missed the delivery window.

The California secretary of state's office reported that over 6.4 million registered voters had cast ballots as of Sunday. Los Angeles County accounted for nearly 1.4 million of those votes, while Orange County recorded roughly 600,800 early ballots. The state has more than 23 million registered voters.

Citizens who are not yet registered can use the conditional voter registration process. They can register at a vote center or county elections office and cast a ballot immediately. Their votes will be counted only after their registration is verified and approved.

Results will begin appearing shortly after 8 p.m. today. Local election officials must certify their county results by Dec. 3. The state secretary of state has until Dec. 11 to certify all statewide results. Tight races may take several days to resolve before official certification is complete.

Voters can track the status of their ballot at california.ballottrax.net. Los Angeles County residents can find voting locations at locator.lavote.gov. Orange County voters should check ocvote.gov/elections/vote-center-locations for specific addresses.