Contact: Mark Church, Chief Elections Officer & Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder
Alternate: David Tom, Deputy Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder

(Redwood City, CA) San Mateo County’s Chief Elections Officer, Mark Church announced today that Monday, March 11 is the first day of the early voting period for the April 9, 2013 Coastside Fire Protection District Special Recall Election.  The early voting period is from March 11 through April 8, 2013, during which any eligible voter may cast a ballot at the Elections Division located at 40 Tower Road in San Mateo or request a vote by mail ballot. 

“As a convenience to voters, we provide several options for early voting: voters may join our Vote by Mail program; or they may go to the Elections Division, where they can vote on a voting machine or vote by paper ballot or drop off a voted mail ballot,” Mr. Church added.  Hours of operation at the Election Division are as follows

• Monday, March 11 – April 8:  Weekdays, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Tuesday, April 9 (Election Day):  7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

To vote by mail, a registered voter must file an application, either for this election only, or become a Permanent Vote by Mail voter for this and future elections.  An application form is provided in the Voter Information Pamphlet, or is available at the official website.

The Elections Office will begin to mail out Vote by Mail ballots on March 11 and they will begin to arrive in voter’s mailboxes soon after.  Beginning on March 11, every Vote by Mail voter may use the “Track and Confirm” tool on the official website, to verify when the ballot materials were mailed to the voter and when the returned voted ballot was received.

Voted mail ballots must be physically received by an elections official by 8:00 p.m. on election night, April 9.  Voters may mail in the voted ballot any time during the voting period, or they may deliver it in person to the Elections Division or to the Half Moon Bay City Hall.  On Election Day, they may deliver the voted mail ballot in person to any active polling place in the District until 8:00 p.m. or to the Half Moon Bay City Hall during its normal business hours. 

“We have developed these options and resources to give our voters convenience and peace of mind with the voting process so they can select the option that best fits their needs,” stated Church.

The official website at www.shapethefuture.org also provides polling place locations, voting machine instructions (text and video), answers to frequently asked questions, and election news.

For additional assistance, call the Elections Division at 650.312.5222.  All information and assistance is available in English, Spanish and Chinese.

The press release is displayed in its original format. San Mateo County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder & Elections website now resides at www.smcacre.org