In-person voting for the 2024 presidential election is set to officially begin on November 2 and will continue until November 5, according to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder’s Office.
The county will operate 648 voting centers for this period, following a voting cycle that started on October 7 with the distribution of mail-in ballots and the setup of over 200 drop boxes. Early voting commenced on October 26.
Voters who have not yet submitted their mail-in ballots can still drop them off at any of the designated drop boxes or deliver them at voting centers during the election period.
To facilitate voting for Korean American residents, the Korea Daily’s headquarters (690 Wilshire Pl., Los Angeles, CA 90005) will host a voting center in its basement gallery. This center will be open from November 2 to November 4, between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m., and on the final voting day, November 5, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Korean-speaking volunteers will be available to assist voters, and translation services will be provided.
As mail-in ballots continue to be a popular voting method, participation has already been substantial. According to Political Data Inc. (PDI), approximately 5.98 million voters in California, or 26% of registered voters, had returned their mail-in ballots by the afternoon of October 31. While this is lower than the 8.1 million voters who had returned their ballots at the same time during the 2020 election, experts attribute this to a slight increase in in-person voting after the pandemic.
Notably, the majority of mail-in voters (71%) have been those aged 50 and older. In Los Angeles County, 1.25 million out of 5.76 million registered voters (22%) have returned their mail-in ballots. In Orange County, 560,000 out of 1.85 million registered voters (30%) have completed their voting process.
Meanwhile, California’s 45th congressional district, where Representative Michelle Steel is seeking a third term, has garnered national attention. As of October 31, 127,194 voters had cast their ballots in the district, representing a turnout rate of 28%.
BY BRIAN CHOI [ichoi@koreadaily.com]
