[Registrar-Recorder] – The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk (RR/CC) is introducing the new E-Sample Ballot subscription.  The new service provides voters the option to receive their Official Sample Ballot booklet and other important election information via email; bringing a new level of on the go convenience to elections. E-Sample Ballot subscription is part of the County’s effort to make election information more conveniently available to more voters.

Registered voters can subscribe for E-Sample Ballot by visiting www.lavote.net.  The subscription process is fast and secure, and only requires a few clicks (check out our video).  After the subscription is confirmed, the voter receives a link to their Official Sample Ballot and other important election information via email, at least 30 days prior to every election. Subscribers will automatically receive their election information via email, every election and will no longer have to be mailed a hard copy of their Official Sample Ballot to their home address.  Voters can unsubscribe at any time.

The internet is increasingly becoming a widely used resource for accessing information about elections. According to a report by the Pew Internet and American Life Project as many as 54 percent of U.S. adults accessed election information online during the 2010 elections.  “The way voters communicate and gather information is rapidly changing,” said Dean Logan, Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder County Clerk.  “Our E-Sample Ballot subscription has the potential to engage new generations and new demographics of voters that are now online, as well as make election information more portable for the growing population of smart phone users.” Logan concluded.

The service also has the potential to generate significant savings for Los Angeles County.  Estimates produced by the RR/CC indicate that the County currently spends $3.5 million in printing and mailing Sample Ballots to more than four million voters every election.  These costs will decrease incrementally as more voters opt into having their election materials delivered electronically.

As part of its outreach efforts to voters, the RR/CC sent an email invitation to subscribe to E-Sample Ballot to more than 530,000 registered voters this weekend.  A link to apply online is available at www.lavote.net.