More Vote Centers to Open in Pasadena on Friday

Election Day technically doesn’t arrive until Tuesday, but voting is already well underway, and casting a ballot in person will become a lot easier on Friday, when hundreds of additional vote centers open across Los Angeles County, including a dozen in Pasadena.

Voters will be able to cast their ballots at several churches, schools and parks throughout the city.

New rules this year allow the counting of any mail-in ballot that is postmarked by Tuesday and received as late as Nov. 20.

Officials have 30 days after the election to tally all ballots and certify the results.

 “On election night, we will have a good picture of most contests, but the outcomes of close contests may take days or weeks to settle. This is normal,” Secretary of State Alex Padilla said in a statement.

Here’s where you can vote in Pasadena.

• Armenian Cilicia Evangelical Church, 339 S. Santa Anita Ave.

• Pasadena Blair High School, Gym 1201 S Marengo Ave.

• First United Methodist Church, 500 E. Colorado Blvd.

• H&H Jivalagian Youth Center, 2242 E. Foothill Blvd.

• Pasadena Conference Center, 300 E. Green St.

• Robinson Park Recreation Center, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave.

• Trinity Lutheran Church, 997 E. Walnut St., Pasadena

• Victory Park, 2575 Paloma St.

• Villa-Parke Community Center, 363 E. Villa St.

•  Washington Middle School Gym, 1505 N. Marengo Ave.

• Westminster Presbyterian Church, 1757 N. Lake Ave.

• Pasadena City College, Creveling Lounge, 1570 E. Colorado Blvd., Parking Lot 1.

•  Rosemont Pavilion, 700 Seco St.

People can also vote at the L.A. County Arboretum Botanic Garden, 301 N. Baldwin Ave., Arcadia, and Episcopal Church — The Ascension, 25 E. Laurel Ave., Sierra Madre.

Last week, more than 100 vote centers opened in Los Angeles County, with about 650 more to open Friday.

Votes can be cast at any vote center.

Residents can either use the voting machines at the centers or drop off the mail-in ballots that were sent to every registered voter. The centers will be open every day through the Tuesday election.

The vote center concept replaces the traditional precinct system, which required voters to cast ballots at designated locations on Election Day.

Election officials hope the availability of vote centers will encourage people to cast their ballots early, reducing the possibility of long lines at polling places on election night.

The early voting message appears to be having an impact.

According to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s Office, nearly 2 million ballots had been received as of Wednesday, roughly five times the number returned by this point in 2016’s presidential election.

More than half of those ballots have been collected from drop boxes that are located across the county, according to the clerk’s office.

An interactive map showing the locations of all vote centers is available at www.lavote.net. The website also provides locations of the drop boxes.

In addition to helping prevent long lines on election night, election officials say voting early will also help speed the process of ballot-counting.

According to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s Office, a tally of all vote-by-mail ballots — including those deposited in drop boxes — received prior to Election Day will be released within 30 minutes of the polls closing at 8 p.m. on Nov. 3. A short time later, a tally will be released of all in-person ballots cast at vote centers ahead of Nov. 3.

Although election officials are urging people to vote early, people who wait until the last minute can still get their ballots in. The shift to regional voting centers instead of local precincts means it will be more difficult for the public and media outlets to track what percentage of votes have been counted on election night and how many remain to be tallied.

The previous precinct model allowed observers to track the percentage of precincts that have had their ballots counted — giving an idea of how many votes still needed to be tallied. But the new vote center system allowing people to cast a ballot wherever they like regardless of residence means it won’t be known how many additional ballots are yet to be counted at any point on election night.