With the voting deadline approaching in California on Nov. 5, nearly 3.3 million ballots have already been returned. Surprisingly, the majority of these ballots are from voters 65 and older, who are considered the most reliable voters. Additionally, the turnout so far is higher among registered Republicans compared to Democrats, despite attacks on mail balloting by former President Donald Trump and some Republicans in Congress.
In the 2020 election, the California Republican Party admitted to setting up 50 fake ballot drop boxes, but have since embraced mail voting, which became permanent in 2021. State GOP leaders have been encouraging early voting and ballot harvesting, following the lead of the California Democratic Party.
Polling errors have been reported in Nevada County and there are concerns about how it could impact the vote count. In other election news, a report by the University of Southern California Center for Inclusive Democracy emphasizes the importance of rallying Black, Latino, and Asian-American voters to determine which party controls Congress.
The study found that in 43 competitive U.S. House districts, a large number of eligible voters belong to these communities but voter turnout was lower in 2022, which could impact the outcome of November’s election. In California’s 13th District, for example, many eligible voters from these minority groups did not cast a ballot in 2022, leading to a close race between Republican John Duarte and Democrat Adam Gray. They are set for a rematch this year.
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Photo credit calmatters.org
