Redwood City, CA - San Mateo County's Chief Elections Officer, Warren Slocum, announced today that his office is on track for absentee ballot operations for the upcoming November 8th Consolidated Special Statewide Election. "We urge all eligible persons to exercise the right to vote and shape the future of their community." said Slocum.

The initial mailing on Tuesday will include over 112,000 absentee ballots to be mailed to voters with Permanent Absentee Voter status. This convenient voting option allows voters to automatically receive an absentee ballot for every election in which they are eligible to vote. “Permanent Absentee voters are the first to receive their ballots, and they do not have to complete a new request form for each election,” Slocum noted. “It’s very easy, and very popular with San Mateo County voters.”

Absentee voters in San Mateo County will also enjoy a new level of confidence in their voting status with the new Absentee Ballot Status Lookup function on www.shapethfuture.org . Absentee voters will be able to track when their ballot was mailed and when it was received by the Elections Division. “Our elections processes are open and accountable,” stated Slocum, “and the new lookup function provides voters with one more assurance that their ballot is being handled and tracked properly.”

Any voter may request an absentee ballot by completing the request form on their sample ballot pamphlet, by mailing or faxing a written request to the Elections Division, or on-line at www.shapethefuture.org. The written and on-line request must be received (regardless of postmark) by the Elections Office no later than 7 days prior to the election, or 5:00 p.m. on November 1, 2005.

Faxed or mailed requests must be directed to the County Elections Office at 40 Tower Road, San Mateo, CA 94402, or (650) 312-5348 fax. The request must include: (1) voter's full name; (2) voter's San Mateo County residence address; (3) mailing address for ballot, if different from the residence address; and (4) name and date of the election the absentee ballot is for; (5) and the voter's signature.

Voters may obtain a ballot in person at the Election Office at 40 Tower Road in San Mateo or at 555 County Center in Redwood City through Tuesday, November 8th. Voters may also cast their ballot in person, or drop off their voted absentee ballot at these Elections Offices at any time from October 11th through 8:00 p.m. on Election Day, November 8th. Regular business hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. The Tower Road office also features a secure after-hours ballot drop box.

The deadline to register to vote for the November 8, 2005 Consolidated Special Statewide Election is Monday, October 24, 2005.

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