The California Election Code is the body of state law that governs who can vote, how ballots are cast and counted, how candidates qualify for the ballot, how campaigns raise and spend money, and what happens when any of those rules are broken. For the 2025–2026 cycle, every active registered voter automatically receives a mail ballot, the top two primary finishers advance to the general election regardless of party, individual contributions to legislative candidates are capped at $5,900 per election, and violations range from administrative fines to felony prison time. What follows is a working overview of the rules that matter most to voters, candidates, and donors.
How Voting Works in California
County elections officials mail a ballot to every active registered voter before each election.1California Secretary of State. Vote By Mail You can return it three ways: by mail (postmarked by Election Day and received within seven days), at any secure ballot drop box, or in person at a voting location. Drop boxes are built from durable, tamper-evident materials, and their slots are designed to prevent anyone from reaching in or pouring liquid inside. Each box carries a warning that tampering is a felony.2Legal Information Institute. Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 2 Section 20132 – Drop Box Design and Requirements
Photo ID is not generally required. You only need to show identification if you are voting for the first time in a federal election, you registered by mail or online, and you did not provide a California driver’s license number or Social Security number when you registered. In that narrow case, acceptable ID includes a utility bill, bank statement, paycheck, student ID, or government mail. If you have no ID at all, you can still cast a provisional ballot, which is counted after your eligibility is confirmed.3California Secretary of State. California Voter ID and Registration Requirements
Voters with disabilities can use the Remote Accessible Vote-by-Mail system to mark selections on their own device using assistive technology, then print the ballot and return it by mail, drop box, or in person. Selections cannot be submitted electronically.4California Secretary of State. Remote Accessible Vote-By-Mail Translated voting materials are required in precincts where limited-English-speaking residents from a single language group make up at least 3% of voting-age residents.
If your work shift leaves too little time to vote, state law entitles you to up to two hours of paid time off, taken at the beginning or end of your shift unless you and your employer agree otherwise. You must give your employer at least two working days’ notice before Election Day.5Orange County Registrar of Voters. California Elections Code 14000 – Time Off to Vote
Who Can Register and How
To register, you must be a U.S. citizen, a California resident, and at least 18 by Election Day, and you cannot be currently imprisoned for a felony conviction.6California Legislative Information. California Elections Code 2101 – Voter Registration Qualifications Since Proposition 17 passed in 2020, people on parole for a felony can register and vote once released from prison.
You can register online through the Secretary of State’s website, by mail, or in person at a county elections office or DMV location. The standard deadline is 15 days before Election Day.7California Secretary of State. California Voter Registration – Frequently Asked Questions Miss it and you still have options: conditional voter registration lets you register and cast a provisional ballot during the 14 days before the election or on Election Day itself, and your ballot counts once the county confirms your eligibility.8California Legislative Information. California Elections Code 2170 – Conditional Voter Registration
Under the California New Motor Voter Program (Assembly Bill 1461), eligible people are automatically registered when they apply for or renew a driver’s license or state ID at the DMV unless they affirmatively decline.9California Legislative Information. Bill Text – AB-1461 Voter Registration: California New Motor Voter Program
The Top-Two Primary
California does not run traditional party primaries for most offices. Under the voter-nominated primary established by Proposition 14 in 2010, all candidates for congressional and state offices appear on a single primary ballot, and any registered voter can vote for any candidate regardless of party. The two candidates with the most votes advance to the general election, even if both belong to the same party.10California Legislative Information. California Elections Code 8141.5 – Top Two Candidates Advance to General Election Presidential races, local nonpartisan offices, and party central committee seats follow different rules.
Running for Office
Candidates file a Declaration of Candidacy and Nomination Papers with the appropriate elections office. The nomination period opens 113 days before the primary and closes 88 days before it, with a five-day extension when an incumbent does not file for re-election.11California Legislative Information. California Elections Code 8020 – Nomination Documents Availability and Deadlines
State Senate, Assembly, and congressional candidates need between 40 and 60 valid signatures from registered voters in their district.12California Legislative Information. California Elections Code 8062 – Nomination Paper Signature Requirements Filing fees are a percentage of the office’s annual salary. For the 2026 primary, State Senate and Assembly candidates each pay $1,346.94, which is 1% of the $134,694 annual salary.13California Secretary of State. Candidate Filing Information – 2026 Primary Election Statewide candidates pay 2% of the first-year salary; with the governor’s salary at $245,929, a gubernatorial filing fee runs roughly $4,919.14CalHR. CCCC Salaries Candidates who cannot afford the fee may submit a petition in lieu of payment.
The occupation description printed next to your name on the ballot must reflect your principal line of work. Misleading designations, such as a title implying incumbency in an office you have never held, can be challenged and rejected.15California Secretary of State. California Code of Regulations – Ballot Designations Candidates for state and many local offices must also file a Statement of Economic Interests (Form 700) disclosing financial holdings, income sources, and real property no later than the final filing date for the Declaration of Candidacy.16California Fair Political Practices Commission. Statement of Economic Interests for Candidates
Campaign Finance Rules
Contribution limits are adjusted every two years for inflation. For the 2025–2026 cycle, individuals, businesses, and PACs can contribute up to $5,900 per election to a State Senate or Assembly candidate and up to $39,200 per election to a gubernatorial candidate. Political parties face no per-candidate limit for these offices, and independent expenditure committees may raise and spend unlimited amounts as long as they do not coordinate with a candidate’s campaign.17California Fair Political Practices Commission. State Contribution Limits and Voluntary Expenditure Ceilings
Candidates and committees file semiannual campaign statements covering contributions and expenditures, due July 31 for the first half of the year and January 31 for the second.18California Legislative Information. California Government Code 84200 – Semiannual Campaign Statements Large contributions received close to an election trigger accelerated 24-hour reporting.
Political ads must identify who paid for them and disclose their top contributors. Video ads must display this information in a dedicated area covering the bottom third of the screen, with top contributors listed in descending order by donation size.19California Legislative Information. California Government Code 84504.1 – Video Advertisement Disclosure Requirements Print ads carry similar rules, with smaller ads of 20 square inches or less only required to name a single top contributor of $50,000 or more.20California Legislative Information. California Government Code 84504.2 – Print Advertisement Disclosure Requirements Ads using paid spokespersons must separately disclose that fact when the committee spent $5,000 or more on the person’s appearance.
Initiatives, Referenda, and Recalls
California voters can propose new laws or constitutional amendments through the initiative process, or put recently passed legislation to a public vote through a referendum. Proponents submit the proposed text to the Attorney General’s Office, which prepares an official title and summary of no more than 100 words.21California Legislative Information. California Elections Code 9004 – Attorney General Title and Summary
Signature requirements are pegged to turnout in the most recent gubernatorial election. A statutory initiative needs signatures equal to 5% of that turnout, currently about 546,651 signatures. A constitutional amendment requires 8%, or roughly 874,641 signatures.22California Secretary of State. Secretary of State Memorandum 26031 – Initiative Circulating and Filing Schedule Counties verify signatures by random sampling or full count. Once enough are validated, the measure qualifies for the next general election ballot, and the Legislative Analyst’s Office prepares a fiscal impact analysis. Proponents can withdraw a measure at any time before the Secretary of State certifies it: before filing the petition, all proponents must sign the withdrawal; after filing but before certification, a majority can withdraw.
Recall elections let voters remove an elected official before their term ends. The signature threshold varies by office. Recalling a statewide officeholder such as the governor takes signatures from 12% of the voters who cast ballots in the last election for that office, gathered from at least five counties with at least 1% from each. State legislators, Board of Equalization members, and judges require 20% of the last vote for the office.23California Secretary of State. Procedures for Recalling State and Local Officials
Local recall thresholds scale with the size of the electorate and are based on total registered voters, not past turnout:
- Under 1,000 registered voters: 30%
- 1,000 to 9,999: 25%
- 10,000 to 49,999: 20%
- 50,000 to 99,999: 15%
- 100,000 or more: 10%
Special Elections
When a legislative or congressional officeholder resigns, dies, or is removed before the term ends, the Governor issues a proclamation setting a special election. The election must be held at least 126 days but no more than 140 days after the proclamation, extendable to 200 days if it can be consolidated with another election already scheduled in the same territory.24California Legislative Information. California Elections Code 10703 – Special Election Timeline for Legislative and Congressional Vacancies If no candidate wins a majority, a runoff follows. Local jurisdictions can also call special elections for tax measures, bond approvals, or recall efforts.
Penalties for Breaking Election Law
Enforcement is split among agencies. The Fair Political Practices Commission handles campaign finance, lobbying disclosure, and conflicts of interest, with authority to investigate complaints, audit filings, and impose fines. The Secretary of State’s Election Fraud Investigation Unit focuses on voter fraud, signature forgery, and election misconduct. Serious criminal cases are prosecuted by local district attorneys or the Attorney General’s Office.
Observer access is part of the transparency framework. Each qualified political party, civic association, or media organization can send up to two representatives to central counting locations, positioned close enough to see signatures on mail-ballot envelopes, and they can challenge whether established procedures are being followed.25California Secretary of State. Election Observations Rights and Responsibilities
Campaign finance violations carry civil penalties that can reach the greater of $10,000 or three times the amount unlawfully contributed, spent, or unreported.26California Legislative Information. California Government Code 91000 – Penalties for Political Reform Act Violations Most routine infractions are resolved through administrative fines and warnings.
Election fraud is a felony. Committing or aiding fraud in connection with voting carries a state prison term of 16 months or two or three years. Election bribery, including accepting money to vote a certain way, stay home, or recruit others to do so, carries the same term.27California Legislative Information. California Elections Code 18521 – Corruption of Voters A public official who knowingly helps someone cast a fraudulent vote, or who weakens election safeguards to enable fraud, faces the same prison sentence plus permanent disqualification from holding office in California.28California Secretary of State. Penalty Provisions