Young college students are not politically apathetic. They are inexorably concerned about the cost of living, access to health insurance, human rights and the regulations that will determine their daily livelihoods. Students are also in a transitional period; home could be their hometown or their college town. Where do you cast your vote? Don’t let an administrative question get in the way of fulfilling your civic duty. It is actually very simple.
E-15, the California registration rule, means that you must submit your voter registration application by 11:59 p.m. on Oct. 19 to vote in the 2026 midterms, or 15 days before election day. There is a safety net in California state law for those who miss the deadline, known as Conditional Voter Registration. However, registering 15 days before election day is recommended.
For Irvine students who are California residents of counties outside of Irvine, it is your choice whether your hometown residence or your campus address is your primary residence on your voter registration.
If you decide to vote within your hometown, you must vote-by-mail or go to a voting center in your home county. At UC Irvine, there is a ballot drop-off box near Mesa Court Housing and Parking Lot 5. It is available all hours of the day until 8 p.m. on November 3rd. There are 11 additional ballot drop-off locations in Irvine, all of which are open.
You might have registered on a whim or forgot to press submit in a rush years ago. If you are not entirely certain whether or not you are actively registered, you can check on the California Secretary of State’s California Voter Status page. Those who are not registered can do so online. Once you have registered in California, you will automatically receive a mail-in ballot from your county election officials. If you are an out-of-state student registered back home, you can check for your state-specific rules.
If you make your Irvine address your primary address or re-register to reflect that, you can use a voting center in Irvine, three of which are on campus.
The three centers that open up first for early voting in Irvine are at the Irvine Civic Center, the Los Olivos Community Center and the Portola Springs Community Center on Oct. 24. Twelve others open on Oct. 31, and the UCI Verano Place Community Center voting center is only open on Nov. 3.
You can also fill out the California University and College Ballot Bowl form with your plan to vote to advance UCI in this year’s midterm elections competition against other UC Schools.
The unending dialogue around federal elected officials might wash out the equally important races of your city council member or county judge. The high-profile politicians of the upper chamber and the executive branch are not necessarily of superior importance to your local officials. When voting, you should vote to the very end of the ballot. There are online sites that help all voters read up on the endorsements and stances of your federal, state and local officials. There are also 14 statewide propositions on California’s November ballot that deserve a read and vote as well.
Editor’s note: Editorials should not be interpreted to reflect the opinion, thoughts or beliefs of any individual New University editor, staff member or affiliate.
