California Online Voter Guide

June 2006 Primary Election
13th Edition

About This Election

On Tuesday, June 6, 2006, millions of Californians will head to the polls to cast ballots in hundreds of contests. Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. Voters who aren't sure they can make it to the polls should sign up to get an absentee ballot to vote by mail.

If you are unsure of your voter registration status or don't know your polling place, contact your county election office. For questions about party affiliation and your primary ballot, read that section below. For more information about voting in California, see CVF's Voting FAQ; for information about voting technology, see CVF's Map of California Voting Systems and County-by-County Directory of Voting Systems.

Deadlines

Last Day to Register to Vote - May 22, 2006
First Day to Request an Absentee Ballot - May 8, 2006
Last Day to Request an Absentee Ballot - May 30, 2006

What's on the Ballot?

Across the state, voters will choose candidates in 8 statewide Constitutional Office races, one U.S. Senate race, 53 contests for the House of Representatives, and 100 state legislative contests (including 80 State Assembly and 20 State Senate races). Also on the ballot are 2 statewide propositions. Depending on where you live, you may have local candidates or measures on your ballot as well. CVF's California Online Voter Guide includes information about all state candidates and measures; for information on local candidates and ballot issues CVF recommends SmartVoter.

Sample Ballots

If you are a registered voter, your county registrar will mail you an Official Sample Ballot including the location of your polling place and an absentee ballot application. In addition, the Secretary of State will mail you a Voter Information Guide providing information on statewide propositions and candidates. These two publications provide the basic information you need to prepare to vote; if you haven't received them, contact your county election office.

Party Affiliation and Voting in the Primary

If you designated a political party when registering to vote, you can only vote during this primary election for candidates of the political party to which you belong.

If you are not affiliated with a political party, you may still be able to vote for partisan candidates in the primary election because three of California's seven qualified political parties -- the American Independent, Democratic, and Republican parties -- will allow unaffiliated voters to help choose their party's candidates.

Voters who are not affiliated with a political party but wish to participate in the American Independent, Democratic or Republican party primaries must request a partisan ballot either at the polls or on their absentee ballot request forms. You may request only one party's ballot (i.e. you cannot vote for a Democrat for Governor and a Republican for U.S. Senate.) If you do not request a partisan ballot, you will automatically be given a ballot with only candidates for nonpartisan office. More information about party affiliation and voting is available in CVF's Voting FAQ.

Party affiliation is not a factor in voting for the propositions -- all voters regardless of party are eligible to vote for or against local and statewide ballot measures.

Additional Web Resources

Visit CVF's Elections index page for additional election-related resources and archived California Online Voter Guides. CVF recommends the following nonpartisan web sites for additional 2006 primary election information:

Secretary of State: Elections and Voter Information homepage
Secretary of State: Official Voter Information Guide
Easy Voter Guide
Around the Capitol's Election Track featuring up-to-date campaign contribution data
SmartVoter (local election information)
News media voter guides: San Jose Mercury News and Orange County Register

About this Voter Guide

The California Online Voter Guide is an award-winning clearinghouse of election information and web site links produced by the California Voter Foundation (CVF) for every statewide election since 1994. Now in its 13th edition, the 2006 guide serves up nonpartisan information on the statewide propositions and all of the congressional, legislative, and statewide constitutional office candidates in this election. This voter guide will be updated throughout the election season.