Get All The Facts About Elections
Contra Costa County is committed to ensuring that elections are free, fair, safe, secure, accurate, and accessible.
Click on the topics below to get clear and accurate information in response to some of the most common questions about elections. Don’t see what you’re looking for? Email the Contra Costa County Elections Division or call (925) 335-7800.
The Contra Costa County Elections Division is engaged in voter outreach and education efforts to improve public trust in elections and increase voter participation. This website and other outreach work are paid for by a grant for voter education.
Election Security
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No, voting system software and voting equipment are NOT connected to the internet. Security is layered into every aspect of Contra Costa County’s elections and officials take many steps to secure technology so it can’t be manipulated, including:
• Voting systems are tested multiple times before each election to ensure accuracy (Logic and Accuracy testing)
• Stand-alone voting system and tabulators are never connected to the internet, nor do they have modems or hardware in them that could be remotely "activated”
• The voting system is physically restricted under lock and key and only authorized personnel are allowed access
• Locked USB ports prevent unauthorized access
• Layers of cybersecurity measures (multifactor authentication, password policy, staff training) are in place
• Limited access to key assets by designated staff
• Network hardening with vulnerability testing
• Constant and comprehensive scanning for cyber hygiene and penetration testing
• Firewalls, network segmentation, active monitoring with intercept software
• Robust backup and patching protocol
• Strict physical security and chain of custody protocols for all voting technology software, firmware and hardware
• The trusted build of system (the certified version of the software and firmware) is reinstalled before each election
Click to learn more about Election Security Safeguards: 48 steps to ensure election security.
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No, it’s nearly impossible for someone who shouldn’t have access to gain access to ballots or voting software. Security is layered into every aspect of Contra Costa County’s elections and officials take many steps to secure facilities, including:
• Regular facilities security assessments
• Limited access to high-security areas by designated staff
• 24/7 video surveillance and alarms
• ID badges, key card access and logs
• Emergency and disaster planning to preserve ballots
Click to learn more about Election Security Safeguards: 48 steps to ensure election security.
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All staff go through comprehensive background checks before being hired and are properly trained and supervised to protect the security of ballots and voting equipment. Security is layered into every aspect of Contra Costa County’s elections and officials take many steps to secure people, including:
• Proactive security culture
• Background checks
• Oath of allegiance
• Training and supervision
• Photo ID badges
• Strict chain of custody protocols
• Two people with ballots and voting equipment at all times
• Observers supervised and escorted at all times
Click to learn more about Election Security Safeguards: 48 steps to ensure election security.
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All elections staff are rigorously trained to uphold the highest standards of integrity and security of elections. Security is layered into every aspect of Contra Costa County’s elections and officials take many steps to secure processes, including:
• Adherence to the California Elections Code, administrative regulations and local ordinances
• Strict chain of custody protocols and accountability forms
• Two people with ballots and voting equipment at all times
• Ballot inventory controls
• Robust staff and poll worker training
• Testing and compliance auditing of voting systems
• Preservation of logs and ballots
Click to learn more about Election Security Safeguards: 48 steps to ensure election security.
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No all election processes and procedures are open for public observation. Anyone is welcome to observe and ask questions at the Elections Office and/or Election Operations Center Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. People can observe the preparation of tabulating devices, vote by mail processes, central count and election night, canvass procedures, and 1% manual tally.
The public is also invited to apply for the Certified Election Observer Program, which gives “behind-the-scenes” access to the election process to see the many steps the county takes to ensure transparency and integrity. Held in advance of every election, participants attend a series of classes and tours to observe processes.
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No, observers and election officials are prohibited by state law from interfering with the election process such as collecting private voter information, violating ballot secrecy, campaigning, or other interference. If you feel that you have been a victim of voter intimidation or have witnessed suspicious behavior, report it to an election official or click to report to the California Secretary of State.
Voter Registration and List Maintenance
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No, people who aren’t eligible to vote are not allowed to register to vote or cast ballots. When registering to vote, people must sign, under penalty of perjury, that they meet eligibility requirements. Voter registration is validated against the Department of Motor Vehicles and Social Security Administration databases. If an applicant cannot be validated, they must provide a government-issued photo identification the first time they vote. Falsifying voter registration information is a felony and is punishable by up to 3 years in prison.
Under California law, you are eligible to vote if you are a U.S. citizen, 18 years of age or older on election day, not currently serving a prison term for the conviction of a felony, and not currently found to be mentally incompetent by a court. Click to register to vote.
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Election officials use every available tool to ensure the database of registered voters is accurate and up-to-date and that only eligible voters are registered to vote. Security measures, such as signature verification and information checks, are in place to prevent voter fraud. Election officials routinely remove deceased individuals and inactive voters from the voter registration list.
VoteCal, California’s statewide voter registration database, helps elections officials update voter registration if a voter moves and check that voters are only registered once and vote only once in an election in California.
The database of registered voters is regularly checked against many data sources, including records from the Social Security Administration, the Department of Motor Vehicles, the California Department of Public Health, the Employment Development Department, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Superior Court of California – Contra Costa County, and Contra Costa Health.
Click to learn more about Voter Registration and List Maintenance.
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Under California law, you are eligible to vote if you are a U.S. citizen, 18 years of age or older on election day, not currently serving a prison term for the conviction of a felony, and not currently found to be mentally incompetent by a court.
A person with a criminal history cannot vote if they are currently serving a state or federal prison term for the conviction of a felony. Once the person is released from prison, their right to vote is automatically restored and they should register to vote.
A person with a criminal history can register to vote if the following applies: if they are on parole, probation, mandatory supervision, under post-release community supervision, federal supervised release, or in a local detention facility.
Voting by Mail or In Person
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Under California law, a voter’s identity is verified when they register to vote, so voters do not need to show photo identification at polling places.
When people register to vote, they must provide their driver's license number, California identification number or the last four digits of their social security number and sign, under penalty of perjury, that they are eligible to vote. When processing voter registration forms, the State of California checks voters’ identification through the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) or Social Security Administration (SSA). Following state law, first-time voters will be asked to show photo identification if their identity wasn’t validated through the DMV or SSA.
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No. Voting by mail is safe, secure, and preferred by most voters. To make it easy for all registered voters to participate, every registered voter in California is mailed a ballot or can choose to vote in person. Vote by mail increases voter turnout and over 90% of Contra Costa County voters vote by mail.
Vote by mail is a highly regulated process and fraud is nearly impossible due to the number of checkpoints, people, and systems that work together to keep your vote safe:
• Ballots are only mailed to registered voters
• Ballot envelopes are picked up from the post office or drop boxes with strict chain-of-custody procedures
• Ballot envelopes are assigned unique ID numbers to ensure voters only vote once and so voters can track their ballots
• Ballot envelopes are signature verified, up to three separate times, to the voter's signature on file
• If a signature is missing or not a match, a letter is sent to the voter to “cure” the signature issue
• Ballots are not counted until the voter’s signature is verified
• A voter’s activity is logged in the voting history system when they submit their vote by mail ballot or vote in person and only the first ballot received by election officials is counted
Click to learn more about Voting by Mail.
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No. Multiple procedures detect fraudulent activity related to voting more than once:
• A voter’s activity is logged in the voting history system when they submit their vote by mail ballot or vote in person
• Election officials count only the first ballot they receive from a voter
• When processing provisional and conditional voter registration ballots, elections officials check that the voter hasn’t already voted
• VoteCal, the statewide voter registration database, allows officials to ensure voters haven’t voted elsewhere in the state
• Cases where a voter may have tried to vote more than once are reported to the District Attorney and the Secretary of State Fraud Division for investigation and possible prosecution
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No. Drop boxes are under heavy safeguards to protect ballots. The typical drop box is made of heavy high-grade metal, which is bolted to the ground and is equipped with additional security features such as tamper-evident seals, minimal ballot insertion size, locks, and water/fireproof materials, and placed in a public location. State and federal law prohibits tampering with the election process.
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No. When voting at polling places, voters are given the choice of using an official ballot marking device, a black ballpoint pen supplied by poll workers, or their own blue or black pen. If the voting tabulation system is unable to determine the voter’s selections, the ballot image is sent to adjudication to be manually reviewed by elections officials to determine the voter’s intent.
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No. Voting at polling places is a highly regulated process and fraud is nearly impossible due to the number of checkpoints, people, and systems that work together to keep your vote safe:
• Poll workers undergo intensive training and polling places are supervised by an inspector and a clerk
• Strict chain-of-custody and security protocols are in place when setting up, running, and closing up polling places and delivering ballots to the Elections Office at the end of the day
• At least two people must be with ballots and voting equipment at all times
• Voters check in at the polling place to verify that they’re registered to vote and to ensure they only vote once
• Voters put their completed ballots into secure boxes at polling places
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No. The holes in the envelope were designed to help voters who are visually impaired know where to sign their ballot envelopes and to help election officials ensure each ballot has been extracted from the envelope without inspecting the ballot. It is against state and federal law for election officials to tamper with the election process, such as “tossing out” ballots.
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Ballot return envelopes must be signed by the registered voter and verified by election officials before the ballot can be counted. Voters are required to sign their ballot return envelope, or when they check in at a polling place, so election officials can confirm their identity and that they are registered to vote. Election officials check every ballot return envelope to compare the signature to the voter’s signature on file before the ballot can be counted. If the signatures do not match, or if the signature is missing, election officials contact the voter to “cure” their vote by mail challenge status. Once the voter’s signature is verified the ballot can be counted.
Counting Votes
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Yes. Any portion of a ballot that is not filled out is known as an undervote, occurring when a voter intentionally or unintentionally does not vote in a specific contest. The rest of the properly marked votes on the ballot will be counted.
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Any ballot that cannot be read by the scanners is manually reviewed. Ballots that are marked in ways that the scanners cannot determine the vote on certain contests, such as stray marks, more ovals filled in than allowed, or write-in votes, are sent to adjudication where a team of two election officials examines the ballot and makes a joint decision on voter intent.
Ballots that are damaged, such as ripped, torn or stained, can’t be put through the scanners and are duplicated onto a readable ballot by a team of two election officials and then processed by the scanning system. The original ballot and the newly created duplicate are logged with a matching sequence number that ties them together for future reference.
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ALL eligible provisional ballots are counted. California law requires that any voter who says they are registered, but whose qualifications cannot be confirmed through the official list of registered voters, is entitled to cast a provisional ballot. Elections officials carefully check every provisional ballot to ensure the voter is registered and did not cast a second ballot elsewhere.
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Contra Costa County’s voting system is a paper-based, optical scan ballot system that is tested both before and after every election to verify votes are counted and recorded properly.
• Before every election, officials conduct a Logic and Accuracy Test of the voting system to ensure votes are tabulated accurately
• After election day, officials perform a 1% manual hand tally (audit) of the votes to confirm that the voting system accurately tabulated and reported votes cast for all races
• All paper ballots are stored for at least 22 months
Click to learn more about Voting Systems and Security, Voting Systems Testing and Duplication, and the Official Canvass.
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Election officials do not tabulate any votes or share any results until after the polls close at 8 p.m. on election day. While election officials share preliminary results while counting ballots, outcomes are not final until the official canvass is complete and results are certified. Counties have up to 30 days after election day (28 days for presidential elections) to complete the official canvass (the process of verifying and counting ballots) and certify the results of an election.
During the canvass of votes, officials ensure every eligible ballot is counted, voters only voted once, proper procedures were followed, and the vote tabulation system is properly counting ballots. Final election results and Statement of Votes are submitted to the Secretary of State and/or the County Board of Supervisors.
Click to learn more about Canvass Procedures.
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Counting votes includes more than just scanning ballots on election day and tallying results. Counties have up to 30 days after election day (28 days for Presidential elections) to complete the official canvass and certify the results of an election.
During the official canvass, election officials take many steps to ensure every eligible ballot is counted, including:
• Ballot processing: checking signatures, duplicating damaged ballots, and verifying provisional ballots and same-day registrations
• Vote by mail ballots properly postmarked by 8 p.m. on election day are accepted for seven calendar days
• Ballots received from other counties up to 15 days after election day
• Voters can submit cure letters for signature challenges until two days before election certification
• Roster reconciliation to ensure voters only voted once
• 1% manual tally and verification that the ballot count is accurate
Click to learn more about Why Does it Take so Long to Count the Votes?