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N.9 INMATE VOTING Page 1 of 2 #18//16 San Diego County Sheriff’s Department Detention Services Bureau – Manual of Policies and Procedures PURPOSE To provide a procedure whereby the County Registrar of Voters allows qualified inmate s to register and vote in local, state and federal elections, pursuant to elections codes. POLICY Qualified inmates may register to vote while in custody. Inmates who are registered voters and who request to exercise their voting privileges for an Election Day will be assisted by a Reentry Services facility staff member in obtaining a Vote -By-Mail ballot and lawfully delivering it to a voting poll. PROCEDURE I. REGISTERING TO VOTE Inmates meeting the eligibility requirements are entitled to receive a voter registration card while in custody (refer to www.sos.ca.gov for current eligibility requirements) . To request a registration card, the inmate must send a letter via U.S. mail to the Registrar of Voters office or submit a n inmate request to facility Reentry Services staff (counseling office) . The completed voter registration card must be returned to the elections office no less than fifteen (15) days before an election to be eligible to vote in that election. The request for a registration card and the completed re gistration card can be returned to the counseling office to be forwarded to the Registrar of Voters or the inmate can mail it to the following address: Registrar of Voters P.O. Box 85093 San Diego, CA 92186 -9910 II. VOTE -BY-MAIL VIA U.S. MAIL Request s for a Vote -By-Mail ballot application must be mailed to the Registrar of Voters office no earlier than sixty (60) days before the election and no later than seven (7) days before Election Day, in order for an inmate to vote by mail. The Vote -By-Mail ballot application s can be obtained by submitting an inmate request to facility Reentry Services staff. The inmate is responsible for returning the ballot applicati on to the counseling office to be forward ed to Registrar of Voters or mailing the appl ication to the following address: Registrar of Voters P.O. Box 85520 San Diego, CA 921 86-5520 DATE: DECEMBER 12, 2018 NUMBER: N.9 SUBJECT: INMATE VOTING RELATED SECTIONS: N.9 INMATE VOTING Page 2 of 2 #18//16 III. VOTE -BY-MAIL BALLOT APPLICATION -LATE VOTING A. An inmate can request a Vote -By-Mail ballot application for late voting seven (7) days up to and including Election Day . Inmate re quests for late voting applications should be forwarded to Reentry S ervices staff at each facility . A designated Reentry S ervices staff member will verify if the inmate is or is not a registered voter. B. If the inmate i s a registered voter, a designated Reentry S ervices staff member will deliver a Vote -By-Mail ballot application for late voting to the inmate. The inmate will fill out the application , authorizing a staff mem ber to obtain a ballot from the Registrar of Vo ters office. Applications must be submitted no later than noon on Election Day. C. The completed Vote -By-Mail ballot a pplication for late voting will be processed ( dropped off to the Registrar of V oters office) by the designated staff m ember . D. Reentry Services will designate a staff member to pick up the ballots from the Registrar of Voters o ffice. The staff member will sort out the ballots and distribute them to each facility. E. Reentry Services staff at each facility will del iver the ballots to each inmate. Inmates should be provided with a private place to fill out their ballot. The housing unit deputy will determine the appropriate private area for inmates to complete their ballot. This will be based on the layout of the housing unit and the inmate's security level. Areas to consider: inside a cell if housed alone, interview room, multipurpose room, classroom, recreation yard, etc. The inmate will seal their ballot in the envelop e and retain it until collected by a desig nated Reentry S ervices staff member. The designated staff member must sign the back of each envelop e and collect all envelop es by 5 pm on Election Day. F. The same staff member that collected and signed the envelopes will deliver the ballot envelope s to an authorized poll operator at the Registrar of Voters office or any other official poll ing site.