Sacramento County issued the following media advisory:
2006 brings many changes in Voter Registration laws and procedures. The Secretary of State's Office and the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors are sponsoring April as 'Voter Education Month' to inform citizens of these changes and how easy and convenient it is to register and vote.
Sacramento County Voter Registration and Elections recently added a new 'Voter Lookup' feature on their website to assist the public in determining if they are a registered voter in Sacramento County. You can visit this website by going to www.saccounty.net/elections/ and following the links. This site also allows voters to view their sample ballot and look up the location of their polling place.
New Registration Requirements: The Help America Vote Act (HAVA) passed in 2002 brought new changes to voter registration procedures that all states and counties must comply with before a voter can be added to the rolls. If you register to vote for the first time, or re register after January 1, 2006, you must provide a drivers license or state identification number. If you do not have these forms of ID, you must provide the last four digits of your social security number. This information must be verified before a voter is put on the registered voters list. Incomplete or missing information must be researched by elections staff prior to a voter attaining valid registration status.
Voters who registered by mail and failed to document their ID number on their registration form must show ID at the polls
Accessible Voting: As of January 1, 2006, HAVA rules state that all voters must be able to cast their ballot privately and independently, including those with disabilities. Sacramento County Elections introduced the AutoMARK, a voter assist terminal during the special election in November 2005 to comply with this law. An AutoMARK device will be available at all polling places. Provisional Voting: You have the right to cast a provisional ballot if your name is not on
the roster of voters at your polling place. The polling official will assist you with this process and your ballot will be placed in an envelope for processing after the election. If your eligibility to vote can be verified, your ballot will be counted. The precinct officer will also give each voter who cast a provisional ballot information on where and when to they can confirm that their vote was counted, and if not, why it was not counted. Sacramento County Elections has numerous outreach events planned for Voter Education Month. Below are some of these events and their locations;
UPCOMING OUTREACH EVENTS LOCATION
DATE & TIME
Pannell Community Center 2450 Meadowview Rd. 95832 Sacramento, CA 95832 Wed., April 12, 2006 9 am 1 pm Central Library 828 I Street Sacramento, Ca 95814 Thursday, April 13, 2006 1:30 pm 3:30 pm
Colonial Library 4799 Stockton Blvd. Sacramento, Ca 95820 Wed., April 19, 2006 1:30 pm 3:30 pm
Latino Task Force Meeting 7000 65th Street Suite A Sacramento CA 95823 Wednesday April 19, 2006 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
West Campus High School 'Safety Fair' 5022 58th Street Sacramento, Ca 95820 Thursday, April 20, 2006 11 am 2 pm
Galt Marian O. Lawrence Library 1000 Caroline Ave. Galt, CA 95632 Thursday, April 20, 2006 1 pm 3:30 pm
'Earth Day' Event CSUS 6000 J. Street Sacramento, Ca 95819 Sat. April 22, 2006 11 am 5 pm
'2nd Annual Fortune Festival' Fruitridge Shopping Center 5657 Stockton Blvd. Sacramento, CA 95824 Sunday, April 23, 2006 10 am 5 pm
Rancho Cordova Library 9845 Folsom Blvd. Sacramento, Ca 95827 Wed. April 26, 2006 1 pm 3:30 pm
Arcade Library 2443 Marconi Ave. Sacramento, CA 95821 Thursday, April 27, 2006 1 pm 3:30 pm
'Festival de la Familia' Cal Expo 1600 Exposition Blvd. Sacramento, Ca 95815 Sunday, April 30, 2006 10 am 6 pm
Voting Forum Immigrant Legal Resource Florin Tech. Education Center 2410 Florin Rd. Monday, May 1, 2006 6 pm 8 pm
Elk Grove Western Festival 9950 Elk Grove Florin Rd. Elk Grove, CA 95759 Sat.& Sunday, May 6 & 7, 2006 Sat. 7 am 5 pm Sunday 8 am 5 pm
Family Community Picnic W. E. Mitchell Middle School 2100 Zinfandel Dr. Rancho Cordova, CA 95670 Wed. May 10, 2006 4 pm 8 pm
Family Safety and Health Expo 3909 Bradshaw Rd. Sacramento, CA 95827 Sat. May 13, 2006 11 am 4 pm
Latino Voter Education Forum Boys and Girls Club 5212 Lemon Hill Ave Sacramento CA 95824 Sat. May 13, 2006 2:00 pm
The 11th Annual Strawberry Festival Veteran Field and the Market Grounds 431 Lincoln Way Galt, CA 95632 Sat.& Sunday, May 20 &21, 2006 Sat 10 am 5 pm Sun. 10 am 5 pm
'Asian/ Pacific Rim Festival' Historic Old Sacramento Front St. Sacramento, CA 95814 Sunday, May 21, 2006 10 am 5 pm
For information regarding outreach events, contact Debbie Woods, Outreach Coordinator at (916) 875 5854.
Visit www.saccounty.net/elections/ to learn more about these new laws and to get more information on the upcoming election.
Contact: Brad Buyse, Campaign Services Manager, Department of Voter Registration and Elections, 875 6365.
For more information, contact Brad Buyse at (916) 875 6365 or (916) 599 0368 cell.
