Addresses needed for fire-impacted Butte County voters
OROVILLE » Butte County residents burned out by the recent wildfires can still vote in the upcoming election, but they need to get a new address to the Butte County Clerk- Recorder’s Office in order to get their ballots.
Election officials Candace Grubbs hopes to hear from registered voters soon because ballots are being mailed the week of Oct. 5. Grubbs said fire survivors can let her office know in several ways.
The elections office, at 155 Nelson St., is open for address information.
Questions regarding the election or registration can be made to the ClerkRecorder’s office by calling 552- 3400 Option 1 or tollfree 1-800-894-7761. Registered voters can also email elections@buttecounty.net.
There is also an elections table at the local assistance center that opened Tuesday at Feather River Parks and Recreation Gymnastics Academy, 1875 Feather River Blvd. to help fire survivors with obtaining replacement documents such as drivers licenses and property deeds. The center is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on
Saturday.
“They cando all of that at once at the center,” Grubbs said.
Residents can also go online to https://registertovote. to register to vote.
If a new address has not been established, a resident can ask their post office or a nearby one to place them in “general delivery.” However, residents have to pick up their mail in person.
Grubbs said she was told by postal officials that the Berry Creek post office, although not damaged, was unlikely to open up soon.
Addresses significant
The resident’s address important to get the ballot, Grubbs stressed, but because the races that residents vote upon are determined by their address, it’s important have the proper location to vote on the correct measures and candidate races.
Residents can continue to use their fire-burned address if they intend tomove back, but do need to provide an alternative address to the elections office to get the ballot.
1st Assembly
One twist of the upcoming election is that some of the burned area is inside the 1st Assembly District, where Assembly woman Megan Dahle (R-Bieber), who was elected in March to fill a vacancy in the state Assembly, will face her springtime opponent, Happy Valley Democrat Elizabeth Betancourt again. Dahle won by more than 50 percent in a three-way March race that included Betancourt and PK “Paul” Dhanuka of Redding. It’s only the top two vote getters who move on.
Various Butte County communities are part of the 1st Assembly District, including Cohasset, Forest Ranch, Magalia, Co ncow, Berry Creek and Forbestown. The 1st District includes the counties of Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra and Siskiyou in addition to the Butte slice.
Upcoming election
As was the case in March, the November election will be by a postage-paid mail-in ballot delivered to the voter’s designated address.
Grubbs noted that the
March election turn- out was high, with 58 percent of registered voters returning ballots, the highest turn- out since 2000. More than 67,500 registered voters weighed in.
She expects November’s election to be the same, anticipating a high return of mailed ballots because of the presidential and local races.
Registered voter numbers have increased as well, from 116,000 voters a few months ago to 119,000 as of last week. Butte County had about 122,700 registered voters before the Camp Fire in 2018.
As in March, the ballots will be postage paid, and be mailed to registered voters the week of Oct. 5. Grubbs advises to mail the ballots back as soon as possible, rather than waiting until Nov. 3.
Grubbs’ office will also open voter assistance centers throughout Butte County days before Nov. 3, but reminds they are not polling places but sites for voters to get help with ballots, language translations, and for those with disabilities or other reasons they could not receive or send in their ballots.