Plumas elections office readies for Uniform District Election; statewide special election could add countywide ballot

Marcy, a Plumas County elections official, told the Board of Supervisors on Aug. 12 that ballots for the Uniform District Election (UDEL) will be mailed beginning Oct. 6 and urged residents in affected districts to update mailing addresses. "Ballots will be going out for that election on October 6," she said.

Marcy said the county is preparing for a possible statewide special election on Nov. 4 tied to a proposed constitutional amendment and redistricting, but that the Legislature had not yet called such an election. "If this is to happen for the November 4 election date, they'd have to call the election by August 22," she said, adding that counties were estimating potential costs because a countywide special election was not budgeted.

The elections official listed local contests scheduled for Nov. 4 under the current plan: Plumas Unified School District Trustee Area 5, Indian Valley Community Services District, Gold Mountain Community Services District and American Valley Community Services District. She reminded residents that election materials are not forwarded by the postal service and urged voters to update registrations.

Supervisors asked clarifying questions about whether UDEL is a once-a-decade event tied to the census; Marcy answered that the change involves a constitutional amendment and that the traditional post-census redistricting timeline has been affected. She said the office will send cost estimates to the state if the special election is called and that the elections office will not respond to political lobbying in person.

No formal action was taken; the presentation was informational and focused on preparedness and voter outreach.