California Voter Foundation

Since 2014, CVF has been studying and working on reforms to improve California's vote-by-mail process. While voting by mail is a popular option, it is not without its problems. Every election, tens of thousands of vote-by-mail ballots are rejected statewide, primarily due to lateness and problems with voters' signatures - that they are missing or rejected as not matching closely enough to the voter's registration signature on file. CVF is working to reduce this form of disenfranchisement by supporting laws that require notification of voters with balloting problems, public education, and research such as CVF's 2020 report, https://www.caovoter.org/rejectedballots,
CVF worked on drafting and enacting legislation to reduce the number of rejected ballots by giving election officials and voters the ability to submit a vote-by-mail signature separately from the ballot envelope in cases where voters forgot to sign the envelope. This reform helped rescue over 1,200 ballots in 2016 in Sacramento County alone, keeping those voters from being disenfranchised. Overall the rejected ballot rate in the state has dropped from a high of 3 percent of all vote-by-mail ballots cast in June 2014 to a low of .5 percent in November 2016.

Each election, CVF produces a nonpartisan California Online Voter Guide as well as election songs produced as a video featuring musicians performing a singalong song designed to help voters understand voting and ballot propositions in just a few minutes. These online tools help voters make confident choices while providing an entertaining and engaging way to get informed. All CVF's voter education resources are available and archived online at www.calvoter.org.

CVF has produced a nonpartisan online voter guide for California voters for every statewide election since 1994. The guide is ad-free, easy to navigate and features reliable information to help voters quickly and easily understand their ballot choices. Popular resources featured in the guide include a Directory of County Election Offices and Online Voter Tools - Check Your Status to help voters verify their registration and ballot status.