Voting for a write-in candidate? Here’s the full list of qualified names for LA County voters

If you’re filling out your ballot for the Nov. 5 election, you may notice that certain races allow you to vote for a write-in candidate. That’s where you can vote for someone whose name isn’t on the ballot, in case you’re not impressed with the other choices available.

But wait — there’s a catch! In California, candidates have to file paperwork and qualify to be official write-in candidates. So even though you’re technically free to write anybody’s name on that write-in candidate line, your write-in vote will only count if it’s for someone who has officially qualified.

Write-in candidates aren’t allowed in the Nov. 5 election for offices like U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, State Assembly or State Senate. Under California rules, write-in candidates for those races are only allowed in the primary election. After that, the top two vote-getters advance to the general, and the window for write-in candidates gets closed.

That said, there are still write-in candidates for other races — one person qualified as a write-in for U.S. president and a handful of others qualified for races in El Segundo, Malibu and Sierra Madre. There are no qualified write-in candidates for local races in Orange County this year.

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The list of eligible write-in candidates

Here’s the full list of eligible write-in candidates for L.A. County voters:

U.S. President

Peter Sonski (president)
Lauren Onak (vice president)
Campaign website

El Segundo City Clerk

Eric Kenas
Campaign website (Facebook)

Alissa Kovall
(no campaign information found)

Susan Truax
Campaign statement (Facebook)

Malibu City Council

Andy Lyon
Campaign announcement (Malibu City Council meeting)

Sierra Madre City Treasurer

Sue Spears
(no campaign information found)

Other voting tips

If you’re voting by mail, make sure that your ballot is postmarked by Nov. 5. California law allows seven days for it to arrive and be counted.

If you still need to register to vote, you can do that at any vote center in the county you live in.

• You can look up L.A. County vote centers here.
  
• You can find Orange County vote centers here.

If you have any other questions about voting, drop us a question in the box below. An LAist journalist will read and respond to every question we receive. You can also find more voter resources, including dozens of voter guides, at our Voter Game Plan page.