Some Calif. Counties Racing To Adopt "All Vote-By-Mail" Process

Sacramento and four other California counties are preparing for an overhaul of how they conduct elections, before voters head to the polls next year. 

Polls actually won't exist in Sacramento, Napa, San Mateo, and Nevada counties. Instead, every registered voter will receive a mail-in ballot, which they can send in or drop-off, or they can head to any of their county's new voting centers, which will replace precinct-level polling sites.

Sacramento County Assistant Registrar of Voters Alice Jarboe says it’s a lot of work to prepare.

There’s a lot of outreach," she says. "A lot of internal process changes to make sure all of these components flow together."

Jarboe says that includes locating voting centers in areas near public transit and accessible to those with disabilities. Counties may also have to win the trust of voters. A new UC Davis poll out the week of Aug. 29 shows 61 percent are wary of the change.

Of the other 10 counties approved to undertake the elections overhaul last year, Orange and Shasta Counties declined, while Santa Clara is waiting until at least 2020, when all California counties can make the switch.