Observation Schedule for February 25, 2025 State Senate District 36 Special Primary Election
SANTA ANA, CA – January 13, 2025 – The public is invited to observe as the Orange County Registrar of Voters conducts the February 25, 2025 State Senate District 36 Special Primary Election. All ballot processing, counting, testing and audits will take place at the Orange County Registrar of Voters Office 1300 S. Grand Ave., Bldg. C, Santa Ana, CA 92705. Observers are also welcome to visit Vote Center and ballot drop box locations throughout State Senate District 36 to observe daily operations.
The start dates for significant election activities are listed below. Daily election activities are posted and updated on an observation calendar on the Registrar of Voters website – ocvote.gov/observe.
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Start Date/Time |
Observable Election Activity |
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January 27, 2025 10 a.m.
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Voting The preparation and loading of ballots onto U.S. Postal Service trucks will take place prior to this date and/or time. Those interested in observing the preparation and loading of ballots can view our observation calendar at ocvote.gov/observe for the exact date and time. Ballots for all active registered voters in State Senate District 36 will be delivered to the U.S. Postal Service for mailing by this date. Voters may also visit the Registrar of Voters to be issued a ballot and vote.
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January 28, 2025 10 a.m. |
Pre-Election Logic and Accuracy Test Accuracy testing of Orange County’s voting system will start with the preparation of test ballots and will continue until all devices to be used in this election have been included in the test. It is expected that scanning of the test ballots will commence on Wednesday, January 29.
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January 28, 2025 1 p.m. |
Processing of Mail Ballots Mail ballot processing includes sorting, signature verification, collection and return operations, and duplication of the official ballots.
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February 3, 2025 10 a.m. |
Counting of Mail Ballots Mail ballots accepted for counting are scanned. The votes on the scanned ballots may not be tabulated by the voting system, accessed by Registrar of Voters staff, or released until 8 p.m. on Tuesday, February 25.
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February 15, 2025 8 a.m. |
Vote Centers Open 10 Vote Centers open throughout State Senate District 36 to serve voters daily. An additional 10 Vote Centers will open Tuesday, February 25. All 20 Vote Centers will be open through 8 p.m. on Tuesday, February 25. Processing of Conditional Voter Registrations and provisional ballots can begin.
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February 25, 2025 After 8 p.m. |
Tabulation of Ballots The votes from mail ballots processed and scanned by this day and in-person ballots cast at Vote Centers will be tabulated by the voting system. Unofficial Election Results Reports will be posted at 8:05 p.m., 9:30 p.m., and every half hour thereafter until all Vote Center ballots are tabulated.
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February 26, 2025 8 a.m. |
Official Canvass During the Official Canvass, the Registrar of Voters continues to process mail ballots; accounts for all ballots that were issued, voted, and those that were not used; and completes audits. The canvass must be completed no later than Thursday, March 6.
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February 26, 2025 11 a.m. |
One Percent Manual Tally At least 1% of all precincts will be randomly selected at this time. It is expected that the hand counting of all ballots from those precincts to verify the votes tabulated by the voting system software will commence on Thursday, February 27.
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March 3, 2025 8 a.m. |
Post-Election Logic and Accuracy Test The scanning of test ballots on all voting system devices will commence to confirm that the system is still tabulating votes accurately.
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