After Supreme Court Victory, Bonta Says Mail-In Voting Remains Safe and Secure in California
SACRAMENTO — California Attorney General Rob Bonta on October 5 held a press conference reaffirming that Californians can safely vote by mail in the November 3, 2026 general election, after the U.S. Supreme Court last month blocked the Trump Administration from imposing new mail-voting requirements ahead of the election. Counties across the state are beginning to mail ballots to all registered voters this week, and ballot drop-off boxes opened on October 5.
"We are just four weeks from Election Day, and I know some Californians may be wondering whether everything coming out of Washington has changed how they can vote. The answer is no," Bonta said. "We successfully secured a U.S. Supreme Court order that protects your ability to vote by mail, so you can continue to vote as you have in past elections — whether by mail, ballot drop box, early, or in-person on Election Day."
Bonta also pointed to two other recent court victories. Last month, the California Supreme Court ordered the return of approximately 650,000 voted ballots unlawfully seized by Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, and affirmed the Attorney General's authority to supervise county sheriffs. In August, a California appellate court upheld a preliminary injunction blocking Shasta County's Measure B, which would have eliminated vote-by-mail and most early voting.
More than 89 percent of Californians who voted in the June 2026 primary cast their ballots by mail. Because of changes in U.S. Postal Service operations, mail dropped off more than 50 miles from a regional processing hub is now collected the next day instead of the same day, so a ballot mailed on Election Day in some areas might not be postmarked until the day after — and late ballots are not counted. Voters returning ballots by mail should do so at least a week before Election Day, or use a drop box or vote center instead. The deadline to register to vote is Monday, October 19; after that, same-day registration is available in person.
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Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：投递到选区的邮寄选票（资料图，Joe Hall摄，CC BY 2.0，Wikimedia Commons）。Vote-by-mail ballots delivered to a precinct (file photo by Joe Hall, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons).
