So you’ve gotten your ballot for the big election in the mail. Now what? There are several ways to vote, so be sure to choose the one that best suits you.
First of all, you can mark your ballot at home and put it in the return envelope. Be sure to sign the envelope and write your name and complete address on the outside. Then place the envelope in any mailbox or secure Ballot Drop Box in town (see list below). You can also take your completed ballot to a post office or Vote Center (see list below) and turn it in there.
Ballots must be postmarked or returned in-person on or before Tuesday, November 5th.
Ballot Drop Box Locations:
- Harvard Community Center (14701 Harvard Avenue)
- Heritage Park Community Center (4301 Yale Avenue)
- Irvine Metrolink Station (15215 Barranca Parkway)
- Orange County United Way (18012 Mitchell S)
- Rancho Senior Center (3 Ethel Coplen Way)
- Trabuco Center (5701 Trabuco Road)
- Turtle Rock Community Park (1 Sunnyhill)
- UCI Parking Lot 5 (405 W. Peltason Drive)
- University Park Branch Library (4512 Sandburg Way)
- Woodbury Community Park (130 Sanctuary)
Vote Center Locations:
Three Vote Centers — the Irvine Civic Center (1 Civic Center Plaza), Los Olivos Community Center (101 Alfonso), and Portola Springs Community Center (900 Tomato Springs) — will open for early in-person voting on Saturday, October 26th. These three Vote Centers will be open daily from 8am until 5pm through November 1st.
On Saturday (November 2nd), twelve additional Vote Centers will open. From November 2nd thru November 4th, all Vote Centers in Irvine will be open from 8am until 8pm; and on Election Day (November 5th) from 7am until 8pm.
Click here for the full list of Vote Centers in Irvine.
If you’ve been meaning to register to vote but haven’t gotten around to it, good news! A new California law allows residents to register and vote right up until Election Day. You will need to complete a same-day registration form and then vote in-person at any of the 15 Vote Centers in town. (Your ballot will be processed and counted once the OC Registrar of Voters has completed the voter registration verification process.)
Once you’ve voted, you can track the progress of your ballot through the counting process by signing up at WheresMyBallot.sos.ca.gov. You will get email alerts when your ballot has been received and counted.
This is the first election that members of the City Council will be elected by district instead of citywide, a change that was overwhelmingly approved by Irvine voters in the March primary election this year. To find out which district you are in, check this map.
Your ballot will list the candidates running for Council in your district. In all, there are 15 candidates for City Council distributed across four Council districts that are up for election this year. The additional two districts will be on the 2026 ballot. There are also seven candidates running for Mayor, who will continue to be elected by all voters in the City.
Candidate statements for the City Council and Mayoral candidates are in the voter pamphlets mailed to all registered voters and posted online here.
When filling out your ballot, don’t stop at the top! Our new Mayor and Council will decide more than whether potholes are filled or trash is picked up. In fact, the next Mayor and Council will determine whether 57,000 new housing units are built in Irvine and whether massive warehouses will be built near residential neighborhoods. That’s why Irvine Community News & Views urges our readers to make sure your voice is heard. Vote by November 5th!
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