Help Prevent Further Obstacles to Voting

Assembly Bill 1872 (Low) would make the day of statewide general elections in even-numbered years a state holiday, eliminating Washington’s Birthday as a holiday in those years.

It is important for Californians to exercise their civic duties by voting for state, local, and federal elected officials, but creating an Election Day holiday is not the way to promote increased voter turnout. According to the Census Bureau, fewer than 2 percent of registered voters indicated that they were too busy to vote in the 2016 election. Further, registered voters can vote by mail during our state's election season instead of attending the polls on Election Day. In fact, the vast majority of California voters already vote by mail. Therefore, this bill is not necessary to encourage higher voter turnout.

The creation of a new state holiday for Election Day will likely result in private employers observing this state holiday. This is particularly troublesome following the passage of laws mandating more employee leave. Further, the creation of Election Day holidays in AB 1872 would disrupt school instructional calendars. This may even result in a drop in the general population's voting rates as parents will need to provide or find childcare on Election Day.
AB 1872 is an unnecessary bill that could make it harder for Californians to vote.