California primary: How to find the nearest polling place and everything you need to know about voting changes
The California primary election is underway, and there are several changes to where and how you can cast your ballot this year.
VOTE CENTERS
One of the biggest is vote centers instead of traditional polling places. They opened 11 days ago and will remain open until 8 p.m. Tuesday.
"Here's the beauty of them: you can go to any vote center in Orange County. You don't have to go to one specifically tied to your home precinct," said Orange County Registrar of Voters' Neal Kelley.
To find your nearest voting location, visit your county's registrar of voters website:
In the last major election, there were about 900 polling places across the county. Now, there are just about 200 vote centers.
"The difference is, a polling place and a garage can handle about 1,000 voters. A vote center can handle 10,000 voters, so it's a big difference in terms of the volume," said Orange County Registrar of Voters Neal Kelley.
There are also four-day vote centers that opened the Saturday before Election Day, so you've got to pay attention to specifics.
Counties across California are moving to this new vote center model.
For instance, Los Angeles County is doing vote centers this year. For specifics, voters should go to their local county registrar's website. Although it might take some getting used to, the goal is to make things easier and convenient.
"It gives people a little more freedom in terms of, they can show up on a weekend, they can show up later in the day in case their hours are impacting them. It's a big deal," said Michele Ryan of Anaheim Hills, who also volunteers with the registrar's office.
ELECTRONIC VOTING SYSTEM
The presidential primary election on March 3 will be the first time Californians will vote using a new system.
They will also be voting on an electronic ballot marking device.
The change comes as the old voting equipment can no longer be updated with new parts.
At the end of the night, the ballots collected in Norwalk will be transported by the sheriff to a location in downey where the votes will be counted.
Officials say because there is a new ballot system, the tally system has changed as well.
CASTING YOUR BALLOT
Los Angeles County district attorney
Apart from choosing a Democratic presidential candidate to run against President Donald Trump, Los Angeles County voters will cast their ballot for district attorney.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey, the first woman and first African-American DA in the county, is running for a third term. She is facing challenges from George Gascon, the former district attorney of San Francisco who also served as a Los Angeles Police Department assistant chief, and former public defender Rachel Rossi.
25th Congressional District
Meanwhile, more than a dozen candidates are battling it out for the Congressional seat vacated by Katie Hill.
Republican Steve Knight, who lost District 25 to Hill in 2018, is among those running.
Hill resigned last year over allegations of inappropriate sexual relationships with staffers.
Prop 13
Another issue to decide in the voting booth: Proposition 13 - a $15 dollar state bond measure.
It would fund facilities projects at public schools, community colleges and universities.
A "YES" vote will allow the state to sell bonds. It would also allow school districts to issue more local bonds.
Districts would also have new limits on their ability to levy developer fees.
Measure FD
People in Los Angeles County will also weigh in on Measure FD.
If it passes with a two thirds majority, it would add about $90 to your property tax bill each year.
The money is meant to help the L.A. County Fire Department in several areas, including adding paramedics, improving the 911 system, upgrading firefighting equipment, combating devastating wildfires and keeping up with substantial increases in medical calls for service.
Measure R
Another one of the LA. County measures on the ballot is Measure R, a proposal to expand the powers of the Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission.
A "YES" vote would give the commission the power to issue subpoenas to the sheriff's department, conduct investigations using its own staff and develop a plan to reduce the L.A. County Jail population.
HOW DELEGATES WILL BE ALLOCATED
California is one of 14 states that will vote on Super Tuesday. It's the biggest prize by far for the presidential hopefuls, with more than 400 delegates at stake.
California delegates are partly divvied up in what amounts to 53 separate elections in congressional districts. A candidate must win 15 percent of the vote in a district to qualify for at least one delegate.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
