CHAPTER 4. Definitions [300. - 362.]

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC 4.
in effect

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 300. Section 300.

(a) “Vote by mail voter” means any voter casting a ballot in any way other than at the polling place. (b) “Military or overseas voter” means an elector absent from the county in which he or she is otherwise eligible to vote who is any of the following: (1) A member of the active or reserve components of the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard; a Merchant Marine; a member of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps; a member of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps of the United States; or a member on activated status of the National Guard or state militia. (2) A citizen of the United States living outside of the territorial limits of the United States or the District of Columbia. (3) A spouse or dependent of a person described in paragraph (1).

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 300.5. Section 300.5.

“Affiliated with a political party” as used in reference to a voter or to a candidate for a voter-nominated office means the party preference that the voter or candidate has disclosed on his or her affidavit of registration.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 301. Section 301.

(a) A “ballot” is the presentation of the contests consisting of offices and measures, and the candidates and choices to be voted on. (b) The ballot presentations shall include either of the following: (1) One or more ballot cards, as defined in Section 302, upon which are printed the names of candidates for each contest and the ballot titles of measures to be voted on by marking the designated area and that are tabulated manually or by optical scanning equipment. The ballot card may include visual graphics and instructions. (2) An electronic voting system, certified or conditionally approved by the Secretary of State, upon which the names of the candidates for each contest and the ballot titles of measures to be voted on are selected by touching the screen or using other physical controls. The electronic voting system shall print the selections made by the voter, which may be in the form of a list or facsimile of a marked preprinted ballot.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 302. Section 302.

“Ballot card” means a card or a number of cards upon which are printed, or identified by reference to the ballot, the names of candidates for nomination or election to one or more offices or the ballot titles of one or more measures. The ballot card shall also contain blank spaces to allow the voter to write in names not printed on the ballot.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 303. Section 303.

“Ballot label” means: (a) For a candidate, the combination of candidate name and candidate designation. (b) For a statewide measure, a condensed version of the ballot title and summary, including the fiscal impact summary prepared pursuant to Section 9087 of this code and Section 88003 of the Government Code, that is no more than 75 words, followed by a listing of the names of supporters and opponents in the ballot arguments printed in the state voter information guide as described in Section 9051. (c) For all other measures, the question and statements specified in Section 13119 or the question specified in Section 13120, as applicable. (d) For an advisory vote, the description as indicated in Section 9603.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 303.1. Section 303.1.

Notwithstanding Section 303, for a statewide referendum measure, the ballot label shall consist of the condensed title and summary which includes the ballot title in the form of a question and a condensed summary containing the chief purposes and points of the law proposed to be overturned. The condensed title shall be in the form of a question as follows: “Should California keep or overturn a law passed in [enter year statute was enacted] [followed by no more than 15 words stating the general subject or nature of the law]?” The condensed title shall be followed by a condensed summary containing the chief purposes and points of the law proposed to be overturned. The condensed title and summary shall be no more than 75 words total. Commencing January 1, 2025, the condensed title and summary shall be followed by a listing of the names of supporters and opponents in the ballot arguments printed in the state voter information guide as described in subdivision (c) of Section 9051.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 303.3. Section 303.3.

“Remote accessible vote by mail system” means a mechanical, electromechanical, or electronic system and its software that is used for the sole purpose of marking an electronic vote by mail ballot for a voter who shall print the paper cast vote record to be submitted to the elections official. A remote accessible vote by mail system shall not be connected to a voting system at any time.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 303.4. Section 303.4.

“Ballot on demand system” means a self-contained system that allows users to do both of the following on an as-needed basis: (a) Manufacture and finish card stock. (b) Finish unfinished ballot cards into ballot cards.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 303.5. Section 303.5.

(a) “Ballot title” is the name of a statewide initiative measure or measure proposed by the Legislature, or, in the case of a statewide referendum measure, the question included in the ballot label and the ballot title and summary. (b) (1) “Ballot title and summary” means, for a statewide initiative measure or measure proposed by the Legislature, the summary of the chief purpose and points including the fiscal impact summary of any measure that appears in the state voter information guide. The ballot title and summary for a statewide initiative measure or measure proposed by the Legislature shall include a statement of the measure’s fiscal impact. The ballot title and summary for a statewide initiative measure or measure proposed by the Legislature shall not exceed 100 words, not including the fiscal impact statement. (2) (A) For a statewide referendum measure, “ballot title and summary” means the ballot title that is in the form of a question followed by a summary of the chief purpose and points of the law proposed to be overturned that appears in the state voter information guide. The ballot title shall be posed in the form of a question as follows: “Should California keep or overturn a law passed in [enter year statute was enacted][followed by no more than 15 words stating the general subject or nature of the law]?” The ballot title shall be followed by a summary containing the chief purposes and points of the law proposed to be overturned, including the fiscal impact statement. The ballot title and summary for a statewide referendum measure shall not exceed 100 words, not including the fiscal impact statement. (B) The ballot title and summary that appears in the state voter information guide for a statewide referendum measure shall be followed by the measure’s top funders as set forth in subclause (II) of clause (i) of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 9086 of this code and subclause (II) of clause (i) of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 88002 of the Government Code. (c) (1) “Circulating title and summary” means the text that is required to be placed on a petition for signatures that is either one of the following: (A) The summary of the chief purpose and points of a proposed initiative measure that affects the Constitution or laws of the state, and the fiscal impact of the proposed initiative measure. (B) The summary of the chief purpose and points of a referendum measure that affects a law or laws of the state, which includes the ballot title that is in the form of a question as follows: “Should California keep or overturn a law passed in [enter year statute was enacted] [followed by no more than 15 words stating the general subject or nature of the law]?” The ballot title shall be followed by a summary containing the chief purposes and points of the law proposed to be overturned. (2) The circulating title and summary shall not exceed 100 words, not including the fiscal impact summary for a statewide initiative measure.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 304. Section 304.

“Campaign advertising or communication” means a communication authorized by a candidate or a candidate’s controlled committee, as defined in Section 82016 of the Government Code, or by a committee making independent expenditures, as defined in Section 82031 of the Government Code, or by a committee formed primarily to support or oppose a ballot measure, as defined in Section 82047.5 of the Government Code, for the purpose of advocating the election or defeat of a qualified candidate or ballot measure through any broadcasting station, newspaper, magazine, outdoor advertising facility, direct mailing, or any other type of general, public, political advertising.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 305. Section 305.

(a) “Candidate,” for purposes of Section 2184, includes any person who declares in writing, under penalty of perjury, that the person is a candidate, naming the office. (b) “Candidate,” as used in Article 1 (commencing with Section 20200) of Chapter 3 of Division 20, means an individual listed on the ballot, or who has qualified to have write-in votes on the individual’s behalf counted by elections officials, for nomination or for election to any elective state or local office, or who receives a contribution or makes an expenditure or gives the individual’s consent for any other person to receive a contribution or makes an expenditure with a view to bringing about the individual’s nomination or election to any elective state or local office, whether or not the specific elective office for which the individual will seek nomination or election is known at the time the contribution is received or the expenditure is made. The term “candidate” includes any officeholder who is subject to a recall election. (c) “Candidate for public office,” as used in Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 20400) of Division 20, means an individual who has qualified to have the individual’s name listed on the ballot of any election, or who has qualified to have written votes on the individual’s behalf counted by election officials, for nomination for, or election to, any state, regional, county, municipal, or district office which is filled at an election.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 305.5. Section 305.5.

(a) “Paper cast vote record” means an auditable document that corresponds to the selection made on the voter’s ballot and lists the contests on the ballot and the voter’s selections for those contests. (b) A paper cast vote record is a ballot only if the paper cast vote record is generated on a voting device or machine that complies with ballot layout requirements and is tabulated by a separate device from the device that created the paper cast vote record.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 306. Section 306.

“City measure” includes any proposed city charter, any proposed amendment to a city charter, any proposition for the issuance of bonds by the city, any advisory question, or any other question or proposition submitted to the voters of a city.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 307. Section 307.

“Clerk” means the county elections official, registrar of voters, city clerk, or other officer or board charged with the duty of conducting any election.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 308. Section 308.

“District elections official,” for the purposes of initiative and referendum under Article 1 (commencing with Section 9300) of Chapter 4 of Division 9, includes the county elections official or other officer or board charged with performing the duties required of the clerk of the district by that chapter.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 309. Section 309.

“Committee,” as used in Article 1 (commencing with Section 20200) of Chapter 3 of Division 20, means any person or combination of persons who, directly or indirectly, receive contributions or make expenditures or contributions for the purpose of influencing or attempting to influence the action of voters for or against the nomination or election of one or more candidates, or the passage, or defeat of any measure, and who is required to file campaign reports or statements under Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 84100) of Title 9 of the Government Code.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 312. Section 312.

“County measure” includes any proposed county charter, any proposed amendment to a county charter, any proposition for the issuance of funding or refunding bonds of the county, any other question or proposition submitted to the voters of a county at any election held throughout an entire single county, any advisory question, or any bond proposal or any advisory question submitted to the voters of any public district although the boundaries of the district may be coterminous with those of the county.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 314. Section 314.

“County officer” means any elected officer enumerated in Division 2 (commencing with Section 24000) of Title 3 of the Government Code.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 316. Section 316.

“Direct primary” is the primary election held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in June in each even-numbered year that is not evenly divisible by four and on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March in each even-numbered year that is evenly divisible by four.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 317. Section 317.

“District,” for purposes of initiative and referendum under Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 9300) of Division 9, includes any regional agency that has the power to tax, to regulate land use, or to condemn and purchase land.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 319. Section 319.

“Election board” means the board of supervisors of each county, the city council or other governing body of a city, or any board or officer to whom similar powers and duties are given by any charter.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 319.5. Section 319.5.

(a) “Electioneering” means the visible display or audible dissemination of information that advocates for or against any candidate or measure on the ballot within the 100 foot limit specified in subdivision (b). Prohibited electioneering information or activity includes, but is not limited to, any of the following: (1) A display of a candidate’s name, likeness, or logo. (2) A display of a ballot measure’s number, title, subject, or logo. (3) Buttons, hats, pencils, pens, shirts, signs, or stickers containing electioneering information. (4) Dissemination of audible electioneering information. (5) Obstructing access to, loitering near, or disseminating visible or audible electioneering information at vote by mail ballot drop boxes. (b) The activities described in subdivision (a) are prohibited within 100 feet of either of the following: (1) The entrance to a building that contains a polling place as defined by Section 338.5, an elections official’s office, or a satellite location. (2) An outdoor site, including a curbside voting area, at which a voter may cast or drop off a ballot.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 320. Section 320.

“Elections official” means any of the following: (a) A clerk or any person who is charged with the duty of conducting an election. (b) A county clerk, city clerk, registrar of voters, or elections supervisor having jurisdiction over elections within any county, city, or district within the state.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 321. Section 321.

(a) “Elector” means a person who is a United States citizen 18 years of age or older and, except as specified in subdivision (b), is a resident of an election precinct in this state on or before the day of an election. (b) “Elector” also means a person described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 300, who, except for the residence requirement specified in subdivision (a), is eligible to vote in this state and meets either of the following conditions: (1) He or she was a resident of this state when he or she was last living within the territorial limits of the United States or the District of Columbia. (2) He or she was born outside of the United States or the District of Columbia, his or her parent or legal guardian was a resident of this state when the parent or legal guardian was last living within the territorial limits of the United States or the District of Columbia, and he or she has not previously registered to vote in any other state. (c) Each person qualifying as an elector under subdivision (b) shall be deemed to be a resident of this state for purposes of this code and Section 2 of Article II of the California Constitution.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 322. Section 322.

“Electoral jurisdiction,” as used in Division 11 (commencing with Section 11000), means the area within which the voters reside who are qualified to vote for the officer sought to be recalled.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 323. Section 323.

“Federal election” means any presidential election, general election, primary election, or special election held solely or in part for the purpose of selecting, nominating, or electing any candidate for the office of President, Vice President, presidential elector, Member of the United States Senate, or Member of the United States House of Representatives.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 324. Section 324.

(a) “General election” means either of the following: (1) The election held throughout the state on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November in each even-numbered year. (2) Any statewide election held on a regular election date as specified in Section 1000. (b) At each general election there shall be elected to the Congress of the United States: (1) One Representative for each congressional district. (2) One Senator, when the general election immediately precedes the commencement of a full term.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 327. Section 327.

“Judicial officer” means any Justice of the Supreme Court, justice of a court of appeal, or judge of the superior court.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 332.5. Section 332.5.

“Nominate” means the selection, at a state-conducted primary election, of candidates who are entitled by law to participate in the general election for that office, but does not mean any other lawful mechanism that a political party may adopt for the purposes of choosing the candidate who is preferred by the party for a nonpartisan or voter-nominated office.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 334. Section 334.

“Nonpartisan office” means an office, except for a voter-nominated office, for which no party may nominate a candidate. Judicial, school, county, and municipal offices, including the Superintendent of Public Instruction, are nonpartisan offices.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 335.5. Section 335.5.

The “official canvass” is the public process of processing and tallying all ballots received in an election, including, but not limited to, provisional ballots and vote by mail ballots not included in the semifinal official canvass. The official canvass also includes the process of reconciling ballots, attempting to prohibit duplicate voting by vote by mail and provisional voters, and performance of the manual tally of 1 percent of all precincts.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 336. Section 336.

The “official summary date” is the date a circulating title and summary of a proposed initiative measure is delivered or mailed by the Attorney General to the proponents of the proposed measure.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 336.5. Section 336.5.

(a) “One percent manual tally” is the public process of manually tallying votes in 1 percent of the precincts, selected at random by the elections official, and in one precinct for each race not included in the randomly selected precincts. This procedure is conducted during the official canvass to verify the accuracy of the automated count. (b) In an election conducted using vote centers, a 1 percent manual tally can be conducted using the batch process set forth in Section 15360.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 336.7. Section 336.7.

“Out-of-state emergency worker” means a voter who is officially engaged in responding to the proclamation of an out-of-state emergency and whose vocation has been identified in an executive order relating to the state of emergency.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 337. Section 337.

“Partisan office” or “party-nominated office” means any of the following offices: (a) President of the United States, Vice President of the United States, and the delegates therefor. (b) Elected member of a party committee.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 338. Section 338.

“Party” means a political party or organization that has qualified for participation in any primary or presidential general election.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 338.5. Section 338.5.

“Polling place” means a location where a voter casts a ballot and includes the following terms, as applicable: poll, polling location, and vote center. A polling place can serve more than one precinct.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 338.6. Section 338.6.

“Precinct” means a geographical area within a county that is made up of voters and is formed pursuant to Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 12200) of Division 12. All voters from the same precinct are assigned to a specific polling place for an election. In an election conducted using vote centers, eligible voters from any precinct within the county can use any vote center located within the county.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 339. Section 339.

(a) “Precinct board” is the board appointed by the elections official to serve at a single precinct or a consolidated precinct. In an election conducted using vote centers, “precinct board” means the board appointed by the elections official to serve at a vote center. (b) “Precinct board,” when used in relation to proceedings taking place after the polls have closed, likewise includes any substitutive canvassing and counting board that may have been appointed to take the place of the board theretofore serving. (c) “Precinct board member” is a member of the precinct board and includes an election officer.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 340. Section 340.

“Presidential primary” is the primary election that is held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March of any year that is evenly divisible by four.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 342. Section 342.

“Proponent or proponents of an initiative or referendum measure” means, for statewide initiative and referendum measures, the elector or electors who submit the text of a proposed initiative or referendum to the Attorney General with a request that he or she prepare a circulating title and summary of the chief purpose and points of the proposed measure; or for other initiative and referendum measures, the person or persons who publish a notice or intention to circulate petitions, or, where publication is not required, who file petitions with the elections official or legislative body.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 343. Section 343.

“Proponent or proponents of a recall petition” means the person or persons who have charge or control of the circulation of, or obtaining signatures, to such petitions.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 349. Section 349.

(a) “Residence” for voting purposes means a person’s domicile. (b) The domicile of a person is that place in which his or her habitation is fixed, wherein the person has the intention of remaining, and to which, whenever he or she is absent, the person has the intention of returning. At a given time, a person may have only one domicile. (c) The residence of a person is that place in which the person’s habitation is fixed for some period of time, but wherein he or she does not have the intention of remaining. At a given time, a person may have more than one residence.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 349.5. Section 349.5.

“Roster” means the official list of voters for an election, which may be in paper or electronic form. The roster becomes the official list of voters who have voted in the election once signed by the voter or marked by the elections official.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 350. Section 350.

“School measure” means any proposition, including but not limited to, a proposal for the issuance of bonds by a school district or community college district, an increase in the maximum tax rate of a school district or community college district, or the acceptance, expenditure, and repayment of state funds by a school district or community college district to enable the district to construct buildings and other facilities, submitted to the voters of the district at any election held in the district.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 353.5. Section 353.5.

The “semifinal official canvass” is the public process of collecting, processing, and tallying ballots and, for state or statewide elections, reporting results to the Secretary of State on election night. The semifinal official canvass may include some or all of the vote by mail and provisional vote totals.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 354.5. Section 354.5.

(a) “Signature” includes either of the following: (1) A person’s mark if the name of the person affixing the mark is written near the mark by a witness over 18 years of age designated by the person and the designee subscribes his or her own name as a witness thereto. For purposes of this paragraph, a signature stamp may be used as a mark, provided that the authorized user complies with the provisions of this paragraph. (2) An impression made by the use of a signature stamp pursuant to the requirements specified in subdivision (c). (b) A mark attested as provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a), or an impression made by a signature stamp as provided in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a), may serve as a signature for any purpose specified in this code, including a sworn statement. (c) An authorized user of a signature stamp may use it to affix a signature to a document or writing any time that a signature is required by this code, provided that all of the following conditions, as applicable, are met: (1) A signature stamp used to obtain a ballot or vote by mail ballot in any local, state, or federal election shall be used only by the authorized user of that signature stamp. (2) A signature stamp shall be affixed by the authorized user in the presence of the Secretary of State, his or her designee, the local elections official, or his or her designee, to obtain a ballot, in any local, state, or federal election unless the authorized user of the signature stamp votes by vote by mail ballot. If the owner of a signature stamp votes by vote by mail ballot, he or she shall affix the signature stamp on the identification envelope in accordance with Section 3019. (d) A signature affixed with a signature stamp by an authorized user in accordance with this section shall be treated in the same manner as a signature made in writing. (e) A registered voter or any person who is eligible to vote, who qualifies as an authorized user pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (f), may use a signature stamp only after he or she first submits his or her affidavit of registration or a new affidavit of registration by one of the following means: (1) Using the signature stamp to sign the affidavit in the presence of a county elections official. (2) Submitting an affidavit pursuant to Section 2196 that utilizes a signature stamp that has been approved by the Department of Motor Vehicles and transmitted to the Secretary of State. (f) The following definitions apply for purposes of this section: (1) “Authorized user” means either of the following: (A) A person with a disability who, by reason of that disability, is unable to write and who owns a signature stamp. (B) A person using the signature stamp on behalf of the owner of the stamp with the owner’s express consent and in the presence of the owner. (2) “Disability” means a medical condition, mental disability, or physical disability, as those terms are defined in subdivisions (i), (j), and (l) of Section 12926 of the Government Code. (3) “Signature stamp” means a stamp that contains the impression of any of the following: (A) The actual signature of a person with a disability. (B) A mark or symbol that is adopted by the person with the disability. (C) A signature of the name of a person with a disability that is made by another person and is adopted by the person with the disability.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 355. Section 355.

“Software” includes all programs, voting devices, cards, ballot cards or papers, operating manuals or instructions, test procedures, printouts, and other nonmechanical or nonelectrical items necessary to the operation of a voting system.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 357.5. Section 357.5.

“Vote center” means a location established for holding elections that offers the services described in Sections 2170 and 4005.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 358. Section 358.

“Vote tabulating device” means any piece of equipment, other than a voting machine, that compiles a total of votes cast by means of ballot card sorting, ballot card reading, paper ballot scanning, electronic data processing, or a combination of that type of equipment.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 359.2. Section 359.2.

“Voter list” means the list of registered voters in a single or consolidated precinct or in an entire county. The voter list may be in the form of a walking list, street index list, or other format, as provided by the elections official. The voter list is updated by the elections official with public information related to who has voted in an election.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 359.5. Section 359.5.

(a) “Voter-nominated office” means a congressional or state elective office for which a candidate may choose to have his or her party preference or lack of party preference indicated upon the ballot. A political party or party central committee shall not nominate a candidate at a state-conducted primary election for a voter-nominated office. The primary conducted for a voter-nominated office does not serve to determine the nominees of a political party but serves to winnow the candidates for the general election to the candidates receiving the highest or second highest number of votes cast at the primary election. The following offices are voter-nominated offices: (1) Governor. (2) Lieutenant Governor. (3) Secretary of State. (4) Controller. (5) Treasurer. (6) Attorney General. (7) Insurance Commissioner. (8) Member of the State Board of Equalization. (9) United States Senator. (10) Member of the United States House of Representatives. (11) State Senator. (12) Member of the Assembly. (b) This section does not prohibit a political party or party central committee from endorsing, supporting, or opposing a candidate for an office listed in subdivision (a).

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 360. Section 360.

“Voting device” means any device used in conjunction with a ballot card or cards to indicate the choice of the voter by marking, punching, or slotting the ballot card.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 361. Section 361.

“Voting machine” means any electronic device, including, but not limited to, a precinct optical scanner and a direct recording voting system, into which a voter may enter his or her votes, and which, by means of electronic tabulation and generation of printouts or other tangible, human-readable records, furnishes a total of the number of votes cast for each candidate and for or against each measure.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 362. Section 362.

“Voting system” means a mechanical, electromechanical, or electronic system and its software, or any combination of these used for casting a ballot, tabulating votes, or both. “Voting system” does not include a remote accessible vote by mail system.
Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026

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