Placer County and the Voter’s Choice Act

Overview

After years of research and planning, Placer County has made the decision to transition to the Voter’s Choice Act (VCA) election model, starting with the 2024 Presidential Primary Election in March of 2024.

The transition was approved by the Placer County Board of Supervisors on June 13, 2023. To view the Board item, visit https://www.placer.ca.gov/DocumentCenter/View/70082/11A.

Enacted in 2016, the California Voter’s Choice Act was designed to make voting more convenient and accessible. The law is opt-in on a county-by-county basis, and allows for a county to transition from a traditional polling place model to a vote center model.

Placer County has typically had to secure 200 to 250 polling places and conduct a massive recruiting effort for poll workers for each election, both of which have become increasingly difficult tasks over the last several years. Additionally, polling places are quite restrictive in both voting time and location – voters can only vote in person at their assigned polling place and on Election Day.

Vote centers address both these issues, reducing the number of locations required and making in-person voting possible at any location for multiple days. Placer County will have fewer machines in fewer locations, be able to provide a paper ballot to every voter, and increase voters’ access to in-person voting and/or ballot drop-off.

In comparison to polling places, vote centers are open for several days preceding an election and are not restricted to the voters of a particular precinct. All voters (including those living in mail ballot-only precincts) can vote in person at any vote center.

VCA also requires counties that opt in to provide at least one ballot drop box for every 15,000 registered voters. As a convenience for their voters, Placer County has met and exceeded this requirement every election since 2020.

To ensure that every eligible voter has unimpeded access to casting their ballot during an election, VCA requires participating counties to hold regular community advisory meetings with disability and language community groups. You can learn more about Placer County’s Voter Accessibility Advisory Committee and Language Accessibility Advisory Committee by clicking here.

For more general information about VCA and its requirements, visit these pages:

A transition to the Voter’s Choice Act election model required the Placer County Elections Office to consider many socio-economic and logistical factors when we chose the locations of both our vote centers and ballot drop boxes. Click the link below for a demonstration of the different aspects the Elections Office considered in their selections.

In updating Placer County’s Election Administration Plan, Placer re-evaluated the same socio-economic and logistical metrics, some of which had changed during the proceeding two years.  Below is a presentation of the current data used in the update of the Placer County Election Administration Plan.

Casting a Ballot

See main page: Placer County Tentative Vote Center Locations

The Voter’s Choice Act was enacted to provide eligible voters with more choice and control over their vote in an election.

Choose HOW to vote
With a vote center (VCA) election model, voters will have more opportunities to vote in person, deciding when and where they prefer to vote. Voters are no longer assigned a specific polling place and will be able to cast their ballot in person, at any location, over the course of 4 to 11 days.

Additionally, all eligible California voters are issued a vote-by-mail ballot for each election, as required by law. Over 85% of Placer County voters utilized this voting option during the last election, a trend that seems likely to continue. With VCA, voters can send us their ballot in the mail, drop it in an official ballot drop box beginning 29 days before an election, or return it to any vote center.

Choose WHERE to vote

All active voters will be able to vote in person at any vote center in Placer County during the voting period. Paper ballots are printed on demand to reflect your local contests, districts and representatives, and counted on site.

Choose WHEN to vote
All vote centers will be open for at least eight (8) hours per day for a minimum of four (4) days, starting the Saturday before Election Day (Election Day hours are 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.). A few vote centers will open for eleven (11) days, a full week longer. Voters can visit our main office in Rocklin and cast their ballots even earlier, up to 29 days before the election.

Drop Boxes

See main page: Placer County Drop Box Locations & Hours

With 29 drop boxes, Placer County is well above the minimum ratio required by VCA of one box per 15,000 registered voters. (See our voter registration statistics here: Placer County Registration Statistics.)  

In recent years, we have transitioned some boxes to more accessible and visible locations. We have also converted as many drop boxes as possible to permanently affixed locations, placing them curbside to allow for drive-up drop off accessibility.

In addition to meeting all state drop box requirements, Placer County’s exterior drop boxes are manufactured using high grade, heavy gauge stainless steel by a US security cabinet company. Bolted securely into concrete with double-locking access doors, cam locks and anti-pry door jams, our drop boxes also include fire suppression and anti-phishing technologies. Boxes are emptied by vetted elections staff in teams of two and employ chain-of-custody and seal requirements.

We will post the schedule and routes for retrieving ballots from our drop boxes on our website prior to each election. If you are interested in observing ballot retrieval (or any other election process), please let us know.

Accessibility

Voting Accessibility
If you require certain accommodations, election officials will ensure you have all the help you need to cast your vote successfully and independently. Vote centers contain accessible ballot marking devices, allow curbside voting, and are surveyed for accessibility based on ADA guidelines.

For those voters who are unable to visit a vote center during the voting period or vote using their vote-by-mail ballot, our Remote Accessible Vote by Mail (RAVBM) voting option allows them to access and mark their ballot using their home computers and assistive devices. To ensure voters’ privacy, the system does not store or transmit selections over the internet; instead, the ballot is marked then printed and returned by mail, drop box or in person. For more information on RAVBM, visit: https://www.placercountyelections.gov/remote-accessible-vote-by-mail/

Language Accessibility
To meet the diverse language needs of targeted communities throughout the county, vote centers will provide facsimile ballots in all the precinct/language combinations as required by California Elections Code. Placer County services the following languages: Spanish, Tagalog and Punjabi in identified precincts based on census data. Additionally, the Placer County Elections Office will automatically send facsimile ballots (by mail or email, based on their identified preference) to those voters in a covered precinct with a required language.

We make every effort to recruit staff fluent in those languages identified above. For all other languages, a language helpline will be available at all vote centers.

Voter Education Workshops

To ensure all eligible Placer County registered voters are able to cast their ballots independently and privately, the Placer County Elections Office conducts voter education workshops for those voters who may need additional assistance, though all interested parties are welcome to attend. The workshops cover a variety of topics and information, though there is a special focus on voter accessibility and language assistance.

The Placer County Elections Office held a voter education workshop for the November 4, 2025 Statewide Special Election on Oct. 1, 2025 at 2 p.m. at 3715 Atherton Road in Rocklin. A recording of the workshop can be accessed using the link below:

2025 Placer County Voter Education Workshop Recording

Public Notice – 2025 Placer County Voter Education Workshop

2025 Placer County Voter Education Workshop Agenda

Placer County Elections Office – Voter Education Workshop

Oct. 1, 2025  2:00 PM

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86151597616?pwd=NSuG0QrDrRvjkLmaMePG8fKxO7nqbc.1

Meeting ID: 861 5159 7616

Passcode: 149524

One Tap Mobile

+16694449171,,86151597616# US

+17207072699,,86151597616# US (Denver) Toll-free: +1-800-824-8683

The Elections Office also hosted voter workshops prior to both the November 5, 2024 General Election and the March 5, 2024 Primary Election. Listed below are the recordings of the workshops in the languages specified.

Recordings of November 5, 2024 General Workshops

Recordings of March 5, 2024 Primary Workshops

The Placer County Elections Office is an accessible facility. Requests for documents in accessible formats, interpreting services, assistive listening devices or other accommodations should be made by calling the Placer County Elections Office at 530-886-5650 (toll-free 1-800-824-8683) or by emailing a request to [email protected].

For more information, call 530-886-5670 or email [email protected].

Advisory Committees

See main page: Placer County Advisory Committees

To ensure that all eligible voters have unimpeded access to participating in County elections, Placer County has revitalized its Voting Accessibility Advisory Committee (VAAC) and created a Language Accessibility Advisory Committee (LAAC).

These two committees provide a forum where community members and advocates can offer advice, information and feedback on elections practices and materials to help our office ensure that voters are able to cast their ballots both independently and privately.

For more information on both committees, visit: https://www.placercountyelections.gov/advisory-committee/

Election Administration Plan

Adopters of the California Voter’s Choice Act (VCA) are required to execute an Election Administration Plan (EAP) that is developed prior to implementation, then renewed after the first two years and then every four subsequent years (2023, 2025, 2029, 2033, etc.). This EAP is intended to ensure transparency and provide voters with information regarding all aspects of the VCA election model, including how it impacts a voter’s experience and options during an election. This includes information about the vote-by-mail process, the services and resources available at vote center and ballot drop box locations, and planned outreach programs designed to educate and support voters, particularly those with disabilities and diverse language needs.

Approved Placer County Election Administration Plan – 2025

Public Notice of Placer County’s Adoption of 2025 Election Administration Plan

Community Input

A public hearing on the draft 2025 Placer County Renewal EAP was held on September 10, 2025 (09/10/2025) at 10 a.m.  at the Placer County Clerk-Recorder Elections Office at 3715 Atherton Road in Rocklin. A remote attendance option via Zoom was available for those who wished to attend remotely.

We welcome your comments, recommendations and questions regarding the EAP. Send them by email to [email protected], call 530-886-5650 (toll-free in CA 1-800-824-8683) or visit the office in person at 3715 Atherton Road in Rocklin.

As part of the EAP renewal process, Placer County conducted public consultation meetings with disability and language communities at the Elections Office on August 14, 2025 at 3715 Atherton Road in Rocklin. Pertinent information or recommendations received during these meetings will be reviewed for potential incorporation into the draft EAP before it is officially released for public review and comment. All public consultation meetings included a remote attendance option to enable participants to attend virtually.

        Placer County VAAC EAP Consultation Meeting

        August 14, 2025 @ 2:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82394692801?pwd=6eoYoaDt7j5s7b5VukUpHoBxyOz9iZ.1

        Meeting ID: 823 9469 2801

        Passcode: 153404

        Telephone: 1-800-824-8683

           Placer County LAAC EAP Consultation Meeting

           August 14, 2025 @ 3:30 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89588425540?pwd=4rzPLVoVQ1zcvYwtoDm9Y11oax58O8.1

           Meeting ID: 895 8842 5540

           Passcode: 364590

           Telephone: 1-800-824-8683

Register To Vote

How and where to register

Voting

Polling places are now vote centers

Vote By Mail

How to receive and return your ballot

Ballot Status Lookup

Track your vote-by-mail ballot

Voter Resources

Learn about the voting process