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Orange County prepares to send nearly 2 million ballots to voters

April 29, 2026

As Orange County Registrar of Voters Bob Page put it on Wednesday, we are “well into this election at this point.”

So much so, in fact, nearly 2 million ballots will be picked up from the registrar’s Santa Ana office on Saturday by the U.S. Postal Service to be mailed to registered voters in the county. Ballots were already issued to military and overseas voters earlier this month, Page said during a media briefing Wednesday morning, April 29.

The ballots this year, Page said, will also be longer, coming in at 17 inches long. That’s because 61 people have qualified for the ballot in the race for California governor, and all of them are fit on one side of voters’ ballots, Page said.

Bob Page, Orange County registrar of voters, speaks to the media during a tour of ballot processing at their offices in Santa Ana, CA on Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2022. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

In California, residents are required to provide a driver’s licence or Social Security number when they register to vote, but do not have to show identification when they cast their ballots. That changes, though, if elections officials have not been able to verify their identity through information already on file with the DMV, Page explained.

Of the 1.9 million registered voters in Orange County, only 0.16% of those (about 3,040) have been flagged and will need to provide a proof of identity — which can include a utility bill or bank statement — to vote in the primary election, Page said. Absent that proof of identity, their ballots will be challenged, said Page.

Federal and state law, Page said, requires that voters attest under penalty of perjury that they are citizens and thereby eligible to vote. If someone registers to vote online and they answer “no” to the citizenship question, they are prevented from moving forward with the voter registration process, Page said.

And state law requires Page to accept that self-attestation, he said, meaning he does not have the separate authority to confirm whether someone is telling the truth.

After every federal general election, the registrar’s office goes through a process to cancel voters who have been inactive for at least two general elections. In early 2025, Orange County canceled more than 176,000 active voters, Page said.

As of early April, 692,107 (36.39%) voters in Orange County are registered Democrats, and 644,235 (33.87%) are Republicans, according to the latest tally by the California secretary of state. Another 443,893 (23.34%) are no party preference voters.

That’s not a massive change for registered Democrats and no party preference voters from the secretary of state’s Dec. 30 tally. The biggest swing is in registered Republicans: There are about 3,100 fewer registered Republican voters in Orange County going into the June primary.

In December, 692,152 (36.37%) of voters in the county were registered Democrats, and 647,377 (34.02%) were Republicans. No party preference voters came in at 443,005 (23.28%).

There are about 1,150 fewer registered voters overall in Orange County in April from December.

But there are nearly 9,000 additional registered voters now compared to February 2025, according to the secretary of state’s data. The tally then showed 689,027 (36.41%) registered Democrats contributed to Orange County’s voter makeup, along with 649,489 (34.32%) Republicans and 436,956 (23.09%) no party preference folks.

Of the nearly 2 million registered voters in Orange County, 24.19% are at least 66 years old. The next largest age range, 26 to 35 year olds, accounts for 17.69% of voters, and 16% of registered voters are between the ages of 56 and 65. Nearly 15.3% of registered voters are between 36 and 45 years old, 14.37% are between 46 and 55, and 12.44% are 17 to 25 years old. (The secretary of state’s tally includes 17-year-olds who will be 18 in time for the upcoming election.)

Some key dates to remember

• On Monday, May 4, early voting sites will open, and voters will be able to start casting ballots. Orange County’s ballot drop boxes are open 24/7, and their locations are listed on the registrar’s website at ocvote.gov/elections/ballot-drop-box-locations.

• May 18 is the final day to register to vote and receive a ballot in the mail for the June 2 primary. Those who miss this deadline and still wish to vote can cast a ballot “conditionally,” and vote a provisional ballot that will be counted once the county elections office has completed the voter registration verification process, according to the secretary of state.

• May 23 is when in-person voting will begin. Vote centers will be open around Orange County from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. To find the nearest one to you, visit the registrar of voters’ website at ocvote.gov/elections/vote-center-locations.

Orange County prepares to send nearly 2 million ballots to voters Orange County Register

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Orange County prepares to send nearly 2 million ballots to voters

Some key dates to remember

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