California sends 20 million ballots out in the mail for each election.
Posted by The John Phillips Show, Checked
- Sources
- 4 support1 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 60%
The John Phillips ShowOct 17, 2026
California counties mail a ballot to every active registered voter for each election, and the sources report about 23 million mail ballots sent for the 2026 primary and general elections, so the claim's direction and mechanism are supported.
This claim is about the present, so it is judged as of the day it was checked.
What was said
… I vote by mail. Eventually, I will. When I did finally have to come home to Los Angeles, I'm dreading it, but why do we send every single registered voter a ballot? Why shouldn't be much more simple where, if you want to vote by mail, you request one? Because right now, we're sending 20 million ballots out in the mail, and less than half of them get filled out. No, it should be exactly the way we used to do it, which is just what you described. If you want to vote absentee, fine. Each election cycle where you want to vote by mail, you have to specifically request a ballot. …
The John Phillips Show · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. The Orange County Register reports that counties had until Oct. 5, 2026 to send ballots to every registered voter, and that more than 23 million Californians will receive ballots by mail.[1]
Supports. The Secretary of State-based tracking shows 23,451,160 mail ballots sent for the 2026 general election, and CalNewsOnline reports 23.1 million ballots mailed for the June 2026 primary.[2][3]
Supports. CalMatters-style master guide reports that all active registered voters receive a ballot, with 23,450,869 issued as of late October.[4]
Context. CNN's fact check notes California counties send a mail-in ballot to all active registered voters, with about 22.6 to 23.1 million active registrants in recent years, so the mailed volume tracks registration rather than a fixed 20 million.[5]
Sources
5 sources: 1 primary, 3 not rated, 1 tier 2
- 1It’s officially the 2026 election: California voters start receiving their ballots in the mail – Orange County Registerocvote.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 2California Early Voting Turnout, 2026 | FundVoterfundvoter.org · not rated · cited for: supports
- 3California Primary 2026: Live updates from Los Angeles | Electionscalonews.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 42026 California voting master guide: Deadlines, vote centers ...californiatoday.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 5Fact check: Debunking Trump’s mail-in voting claims | CNN Politicscnn.com · tier 2 · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
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