Voter Registration Deadline Is Monday

Monday is the deadline to register to vote in the April 10 Los Angeles city election.

This is the first time since a new state law took effect in January that citizens can register so close to election day. For years, the registration deadline in California was 29 days before the election. But the law was changed to 15 days to encourage more voter participation.

All Los Angeles residents who are U.S. citizens and 18 years of age can register unless they are in prison or on probation for a felony. Postcard registration forms are available at public counters in all city departments, city and county libraries, post offices, county fire stations and the Department of Motor Vehicles.

However, mailed forms mailed must be received by the county registrar-recorder’s office in Norwalk by the close of business Monday, a spokeswoman said. They also may be dropped off at the city clerk’s office, Election Division, Room B-23 at 700 E. Temple St., Room B-23 in Los Angeles.

Kristin Heffron, spokeswoman for the city clerk’s office, said that because of the short turnaround time, newly registered voters will receive only a postcard confirming their registration and polling place. They will not get a voter pamphlet in the mail.

The clerk’s office anticipates some confusion at polling places on election day because the names of some late registrants may not appear on the roster of voters. In such cases, the voter may be asked to cast a provisional ballot, and the registration will be checked before the ballot is counted. “We’re going to do the best we can to accommodate them,” Heffron said.

City Clerk J. Michael Carey has not predicted how many of the city’s 1.5 million registered voters will cast ballots in the election, which features races for mayor, city attorney, controller and eight City Council seats. Thirty-five percent of the registered voters cast ballots in the April 1993 primary election and 32% in the April 1997 primary.

Additional election information is available from the clerk’s office at (213) 485-3581 or the county registrar-recorder at (562) 462-2748. The sample ballot and voter pamphlet are available online at https://www.laci ty.org/CLK/Election.