A new statewide poll shows widespread voter opposition to a California law that allows counties to close polling places and instead rely on absentee ballots and a limited number of multipurpose election centers.Sixty-one percent of voters said they didn't like the idea of switching to a system of "voter centers" and all-mail ballots, according to the poll released on Tuesday by UC Davis' California Civic Engagement Project."Voters are not initially receptive to vote centers," said Mindy Romero, the project's founder, during a presentation in Sacramento.There are 14 counties eligible to use the new rules in 2018, with all other California counties being able to join them and move away from neighborhood polling places two years later in 2020. So far, only a handful have agreed to the change.Supporters have said the law simply builds on the trend toward voting by mail, while also allowing voters more access to a variety of election-related services -- including election day registration -- at locations conveniently placed throughout communities.But the poll found substantial skepticism across a number of subgroups of voters, both by ethnicity and age. Eight in 10 of the voters surveyed said they typically travel 10 minutes or less to their polling place, a distance that could grow in the counties that switch to vote centers.Romero said the poll's findings show the importance of explaining the sweeping change in the counties that choose to change procedures under the new law, hopefully minimizing the risk that voters might be discouraged from casting ballots in 2018 and beyond."This is the most significant voting change we've seen in our state," she said. "Education and outreach is going to be absolutely key."
