Statement from Evelyn T. Mendez, Sonoma County Registrar of Voters

As the Registrar of Voters, I am monitoring developments in the courts that could impact legal challenges to United States Postal Service rules and how we serve our voters. Because the matters are still under consideration by the courts, we have no plans to implement new rules here in Sonoma County.

We understand that recent headlines about potential changes to election procedures may cause confusion. Unless we hear otherwise from the California Secretary of State, there will be no changes to Vote-by-Mail procedures in Sonoma County for the Nov. 3, 2026, General Election. We take great pride in being transparent, fair, and accurate. We want to encourage all our voters to trust the election processes and procedures we have in place to ensure our elections are safe and secure.

With the election fast approaching, we want to remind voters of our key upcoming deadlines. County Voter Information Guides will begin going out at the end of September. Vote-by-Mail ballots will be mailed out the week of Oct. 5. Our new office also opens for Early In-Person Voting on Oct. 5. We are now located at 3880 Brickway Blvd, Suite 200, a little less than a mile east of Charles M. Schultz-Sonoma County Airport (Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.) We will have 32 Vote Centers open for this election with seven opening Oct. 24 and an additional 25 opening Oct. 31. Visit our website at socovotes.com for a complete list and map of Vote Centers, and their hours of operation, and locations of 23 Official Ballot Drop Boxes.

While voting by mail is a popular option, we encourage you to stop by one of our Vote Centers or use one of our Official Ballot Drop Boxes to return your ballot. Ballots deposited in one of our Official Ballot Drop Boxes before 8 p.m. on Election Day are always considered timely. In contrast, ballots sent through the Postal Service need to be postmarked on or before Election Day, and received within seven days after Election Day in order to be counted. This is not guaranteed when they are deposited in Postal Service collection boxes close to Election Day.

Whatever option you choose, be sure to vote by the close of polls on Nov. 3, 2026!

Sincerely,

Evelyn T. Mendez
Sonoma County Registrar of Voters

◄◄ Back to Sonoma County Registrar of Voters Homepage