Voter QualificationsDetermination of Residence and Domicile
Section § 2020
This law explains how to calculate the duration of a person's residence, known as domicile, for voting purposes. You start counting from the day the person moved there and stop counting on the election day itself.
Section § 2021
This law explains that if you leave your home to go somewhere else temporarily, either in your state or another state, with plans to return home, you don't lose your permanent home status (domicile). Similarly, if you go to a new place just for a short stay without intending to make it your permanent home, you don't gain a new permanent home status there.
Section § 2022
This law states that if someone moves to a different state and intends to make that new state their permanent home, they will no longer be considered a resident for voting purposes in the original state.
Section § 2023
This law states that if someone moves out of California to live in another state indefinitely, they lose their status as a California resident, even if they plan to return someday.
Section § 2024
This law states that if you want to change your legal residence to another place, both moving there and planning to make it your new home must happen. Just planning to move without actually doing it, or moving without the intention to make it your home, doesn't count.
Section § 2025
This provision says that just because you are temporarily in a place due to certain reasons, like working for the government, studying, or being in a facility like a prison, it doesn't mean you automatically change your legal home, or 'domicile'. However, if you're a student and truly decide to make the place where you're studying your new home, you can register to vote there.
Section § 2026
This law states that a member of the California Legislature or a U.S. Representative will be considered to live at the residence address listed on their voter registration, as long as it's a residence recognized by law. This is true even if they have another home where certain activities occur, such as having a child enrolled in school, a partner's job location, receiving mail, owning property, having utility services or making tax claims, registering vehicles, holding insurance, or keeping personal belongings.
Section § 2027
Your home for voting purposes is generally where your family lives, unless it's just a temporary spot. Even if you live in a trailer, vehicle, or at a campsite, that can be considered your voting home if you meet certain rules.
Section § 2028
This law explains how to determine where a person legally lives, also known as domicile, which is important for voting and other legal purposes. If someone lives in one place with their family but works in another, their official home is where their family is. However, if they move to a new place with the intention of staying, and their family does not join them, their domicile is in the new location. They can also live at the same place where they do business.
Section § 2029
This law states that each spouse's official residence, or 'domicile,' is determined separately. One spouse's domicile isn't automatically considered the same as the other's. Instead, each spouse's domicile must be determined independently based on the rules of this article.
Section § 2030
If you live in California and marry someone who is only temporarily in California working for the U.S. government, you can choose to keep your California residency specifically for voting purposes. However, if you register to vote in another state or territory, your California residency for voting purposes ends.
Section § 2031
This California law talks about determining your main home, or domicile, if you have more than one residence. If you have a homeowner’s property tax exemption on one house, it's generally assumed that house is your main home. However, if a different address is on your driver’s license or vehicle registration, this assumption doesn’t apply. Similarly, if you get a renter’s tax credit for a place, it's assumed that's your main home unless another address is listed on your DMV records. This rule doesn’t apply to state or federal elected officials.
Section § 2032
This law says that if someone has multiple homes and hasn't lived in any of them over the past year, it's generally assumed those homes aren't their main home, or 'domicile.' However, this assumption can be challenged if there is evidence to the contrary.
Section § 2033
If a voter's house number or mailing address changes, but they still live in the same place, the agency that updates the address must inform the county elections official. The elections official will update the voter's registration, and the voter doesn't have to fill out a new registration form.
Section § 2034
If someone lives in a house or apartment that spans more than one voting district, they will be automatically registered to vote in the district chosen by the local election officials based on their street address. However, if they prefer to be registered in a different district that their residence also lies in, they can request this change in writing or in person at the election office. The request must include their name, signature, and address.
Section § 2035
If you're registered to vote in a California precinct but move to a different location within 14 days before an election, you can still vote in your old precinct on election day until the polls close.