Get ready, your 224-page voter information guide hits your mailbox soon

Your mailbox is about to get heavier.

On Thursday, the California Secretary of State’s office begins mailing out a 224-page Voter Information Guide to each California household with a registered voter.

The guide contains details on the candidates for president and the U.S. Senate and on 17 statewide ballot measures. There's information as well on California's Voter Bill of Rights, provisional voting and finding your polling place.

This year's booklet is believed to be the longest voter information guide produced by the Secretary of State's office, according to Sam Mahood, a spokesman for Secretary of State Alex Padilla.

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Believe it not, early voting in the state begins in less than two weeks, so now's a good time to start reading up on the candidates and ballot measures.

Kim Alexander, president of the California Voter Foundation, said the voter guide weighs 10 ounces and voters will find information on a host of issues on the ballot.

"We’ve got drugs and guns and tobacco and taxes and I mean it’s just a full on potpourri of life on the California ballot,” she said.

The guides are mailed out in batches. So if you don’t get yours immediately, be patient: it should be on its way. 

Alexander has these tips on how to digest the information in the guide:

• Consider skipping the hard copy: You can head straight to the Secretary of State’s website. There you’ll find an online version that links directly to further reading, and many will find the digital version of the guide easier to navigate. 

• Go for the basics: Check out the quick reference guide at the front of the guide for a fast overview. 

• Crash on state ballot measures: Check out who’s authored the pros and cons for each measure. That may help fast-track your decision-making. 

Some California counties allow early walk-in voting. Los Angeles County's early voting begins at the county election office in Norwalk on Oct 11. You can take along your vote by mail ballot to drop off beginning on that day, or you can show up, get a ballot and vote in person.

Oct. 24 is the last day to register to vote or change your political party before the November election.

Lastly, keep an eye out for another mailing: county elections offices begin mailing out sample ballots starting Thursday. Sample ballots include information on local ballot measures as well as a copy of what your ballot will look like so you can begin marking your choices. 

Vote-by-mail ballots will begin being sent out October 10 and 11. 

Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the date sample ballots will be mailed out. KPCC regrets the error.