While California has made it very easy to vote by mail, voting in person at a Vote Center, also known as a polling station or polling site, remains an option. At Vote Centers, you'll be able to get help in multiple languages, use accessible voting machines, register to vote, make changes to your voter registration, and more.

Here’s everything you need to know about voting in person, guided by your questions. We'll be updating this FAQ as we answer more, so check back often.

If you have a question that’s not being addressed, ask us! You can submit your question by using the form at the bottom and the Voter Game Plan team will do our best to get you an answer.

When does in-person voting begin?

L.A. County in-person voting began May 4 at the registrar’s office in Norwalk — 12400 Imperial Highway, Room 3201. Additional Vote Centers open Saturday, May 23 to Monday, June 1 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Polls are open on June 2 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. You can find Vote Centers here.

Language assistance is available in 23 languages:

• All Vote Centers: Armenian | Bengali | Burmese | Chinese | Cambodian/Khmer | Farsi | Filipino/Tagalog | Gujarati | Hindi | Indonesian | Japanese | Korean | Mongolian | Russian | Spanish | Telugu | Thai | Vietnamese
• Select Vote Centers: Hmong | Laotian | Nepali |Punjabi | Urdu.

Orange County in-person voting begins on Saturday, May 23 at the registrar’s office in Santa Ana (1300 S. Grand Ave., Building C, Santa Ana) and other select polling sites. All vote centers will be open Saturday, May 30 through Monday, June 1 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. On June 2 polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Translated ballots are available in some locations for Farsi, Hmong, Indonesian, Japanese, Khmer, Nepali, Punjabi and Tagalog.

Note: If you're in line when the polls close, stay in line and you will be able to cast your ballot.

Where do I go?

If you live in L.A. or Orange counties, or any other Voter’s Choice Act county, you can vote in person at any polling place or vote center in your county.

You cannot vote in person in a county other than the one in which you are registered to vote.

What about accessible voting?

Vote Centers offer accessible voting machines with adjustable angles, ballot-marking devices, step-by-step assistance and more.

Voters who are blind may have access to an audio ballot and controller pad. Voters who have difficulty reading the ballot can adjust text size and screen contrast while voting.

Worker assistance, including curbside voting, is available at all voting locations and curbside voting is available at any voting center. Outside of the voting center, there will be a sign with a phone number to call an election worker onsite. They will bring a ballot to your vehicle and provide any other step-by-step assistance as needed.

Learn more about accessible voting in L.A. County and Orange County.

Do I need to bring ID?

No, not usually (although an initiative to change that is on your November ballot). But the California Secretary of State says there is an exception right now:

Officials advise voters who fall into this category to bring "a copy of a recent utility bill, the sample ballot booklet you received from your county elections office or another document sent to you by a government agency," you can also use a legal ID (passport, driver license, official state ID card, or student identification).

What is a provisional ballot?

A provisional ballot is a ballot you cast when additional information about you needs to be verified before your vote can be counted. This most often comes up when you do same-day voter registration or there is an error with your voter registration.

Provisional ballots are placed in pink envelopes, secured for processing, and then counted after election officials have confirmed your voter information.

Provisional ballots have been used in California since 1984. According to the California Secretary of State, on average, 85% to 90% of provisional ballots were valid and counted in prior elections.

• Learn more about provisional voting in L.A. County.
• Learn more about provisional voting in Orange County

Who do I contact if I still have voter registration questions?

Call the California Secretary of State voting hotline at (800) 345-VOTE, or contact them via email: elections@sos.ca.gov.

You can also contact your local county elections office.

This story was written by Caitlin Biljan and published in 2022. It has been updated multiple times since with the most recent information.