The California Attorney General’s office said mail-in voting remains safe for the Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, General Election after Attorney General led a multistate coalition that won at the U.S. Supreme Court defending vote-by-mail.
The office noted that over 89 percent of Californians who voted in the June 2026 primary cast their ballots by mail; counties have begun mailing ballots to all registered voters this week, the release said.
Attorney General Bonta said, "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." The release said Bonta and other attorneys general are prepared to act against any new attempts to undermine voting rights.
The release listed recent court rulings it said protect access to the ballot: the U.S. Supreme Court blocked the Trump Administration from imposing new mail-voting requirements ahead of the November election; the California Supreme Court ordered the return of approximately 650,000 voted ballots unlawfully seized by Riverside County Sheriff and affirmed the Attorney General's authority to supervise county sheriffs; and a California appellate court upheld a preliminary injunction blocking Shasta County's Measure B.
The release warned that a Postal Service collection change means mail dropped at post offices and collection boxes more than 50 miles from a regional hub may be collected the next day, which can make ballots mailed on Election Day arrive late and ineligible to be counted; a Postal Service spokesperson said, "You should never be mailing your ballot on election day."
To avoid that risk, the release recommended returning ballots at least a week before Election Day, dropping them at a secure ballot drop-off box or at a vote center, or going to a post office and asking for a postmark at the counter.
The release said the Department of Justice will be on call to assist the Secretary of State’s Office with enforcement of California’s election laws through a team of attorneys and administrative staff located across the state.
The release noted eligible Californians have until Monday, Oct. 19 to register to vote at registertovote.ca.gov; voters can track their ballot at wheresmyballot.sos.ca.gov and report problems to the Secretary of State’s confidential toll-free Voter Hotline at (800) 345-VOTE (8683) or by email at elections@sos.ca.gov. Attorney General Bonta will hold additional press conferences in the coming weeks to share more information and resources with voters.
State
Rob Bonta
Attorney General · Democrat
Named 4 times in this story.
Portrait: Official portrait
Local
Chad Bianco
Sheriff of Riverside County · Republican
Named once in this story.
Portrait: Riverside County Sheriff's Office / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Sources & methodology
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