California is the most populated US state with a staggering 39.4 million residents and has an immense financial, cultural and political impact on the rest of the country. June 2nd, 2026, is the date of the primary election for California’s 2026 gubernatorial race. And considering how impactful the youth vote has been over the last two presidential election cycles, it’s incredibly important that we remain informed and active within the political sphere.
California has followed something called preferential voting since the “Top Two Candidates Open Primary Act” went into effect on January 1st, 2011. This means that all candidates, no matter their party, are listed on the same ballot. The primaries are not distinctly partisan in the sense that a republican and democrat seat are reserved for the gubernatorial election. The two candidates who receive the most votes in the primaries move on to the general election. So there is a possibility that we could see a republican and a democrat, a democrat and a democrat, a republican and a republican, a libertarian and an indpenernt or any other combination of two political parties that you can think of.
Because of this electoral system, it is very important you know who you are going to vote for and that you are ready to support your candidate come June 2nd. There are approximately 61 candidates on the ballot, so while I wish I had enough time and words to give a total breakdown on every candidate, it is just not quite possible. The current leading candidates include Xavier Becerra, Matt Mahan, Katie Porter, Tom Steyer, Tony Thurmond and Antonio Villaraigosa for the democrats and Chand Bianco and Steve Hilton for the republicans. To learn about these candidates and the other 53, I recommend looking at a voter guide. Calmatters has a really good one that you can find here, which gives you a breakdown of each person running and helps you to find the candidate that most aligns with your viewpoints.
Ofcourse to be able to vote, you need to be registered. If you aren’t yet registered its pretty easy to do and there are a few different ways to do it. Firstly, if you have your drivers liscence or permit or are planning on getting either any time soon, then you might have already registered through the DMV. Additionally, you can register online through a few different websites, including through the University of California and at https://registertovote.ca.gov/. You can also get voting registration forms at your local public library, post offices and even at a polling location. Typically, you need to be registered within 14 days of an election, but there are certain locations that offer early voting and offer the Same Day Voter Registration Process.
If you plan on using a mail-in ballot than you should have received it already. The process is pretty intuitive. Your ballot has instructions that walk you through how to fill out your ballot, and once youve completed it, there are a variety of places where you can drop it off. This can be done at the post office(there’s one on campus), at the collection boxes you see on the street, or at the multiple drop boxes that you can find around polling stations. But if you do want to vote in person than you actually do that on campus as well. UCLA has multiple voting centers, including Pauly Pavilion, De Neve Plaza, The Hammer Museum and Ackerman Union. The last day to drop off your ballot and vote in person is June 2nd, so make sure that you’re on time!
Living in uncertain times means that we need to do everything we can to cause the impact that we want to see. Which is why you need to use your voice, stay educated, become politically involved and do your civic duty.