Clerk-Recorder Certifies Results for Statewide Special Election
Author: Erin Clausen
Date: 12/2/2025 10:44 AM
The Clerk-Recorder has certified SLO County's results for the November 4, 2025, Statewide Special Election. With a countywide participation rate of 67%, SLO is 4th out of the 58 counties in turnout. The SLO Elections Office has also released turnout statistics by party, city, and supervisorial district.
San Luis Obispo, CA—The SLO County Clerk-Recorder has certified the November 4, 2025, Statewide Special Election, the final step in wrapping up the official election canvass. While the bulk of the vote tabulation—including processing more than 113,000 mail ballots—was completed on November 17, by law voters had until 5pm November 30 to cure a missing or mismatched signature on their return envelope. Once they provided a verifiable signature, their ballot was counted and their vote added to the results.
The Elections staff also had more than 2,000 provisional ballots to research and, in most cases, duplicate. Most of those provisional ballots came from polling locations located at and around Cal Poly. Someone votes provisionally if they’re registering to vote there at the polls on Election Day and/or are voting at a precinct that isn’t their assigned location; in most cases, the ballot must be logged and duplicated onto a ballot from the correct precinct by a team of three people before it can be counted. Those steps are a big part of the canvass process and help ensure that every eligible vote is counted.
“We are really proud of SLO County voters for the 67 percent turnout countywide,” said Clerk-Recorder Elaina Cano this morning. “That’s 17 percent higher than the statewide average of 50 percent and puts us at the fourth highest turnout among all 58 counties.”
Cano pointed out that a new state law will require all Vote-by-Mail ballots to be processed within 13 days of an election beginning in 2026. While the county voluntarily met that timeline during this election canvass, it will be harder with more contests on the ballot during the 2026 primary and general elections.
“One thing that will help is our upcoming move to e-pollbooks, which will cut down on the number of provisionals we’ll have to process, since the e-pollbooks can confirm voter eligibility right there at the polls. The current process requires us to do it back at the office after the fact and that takes time,” said Cano. “We’re also going to do everything possible to encourage Cal Poly students to register or re-register from their home county well in advance of Election Day.”
For the June 2026 primary election, the regular registration deadline will be May 18. Individuals who will turn 18 years old between now and June 2 can pre-register and then their registration will automatically switch to active on their birthday.
Per California Elections Code, Cano will release a Statement of Votes Cast by Thursday of this week, which will include a detailed breakout of voting participation by precinct. In the meantime, her office has compiled some statistics that shed light on participation rates by party and around the county:
Turnout Rate by Party
Democrat: 73%
Republican: 68%
No Party Preference: 53%
American Independent: 58%
Green Party: 54%
Libertarian: 47%
Peace & Freedom: 34%
Turnout Rate by City or Community Services District
City of Arroyo Grande: 68%
City of Atascadero: 65%
City of Grover Beach: 61%
City of Morro Bay: 70%
City of Paso Robles: 61%
City of Pismo Beach: 70%
City of San Luis Obispo: 64%
California Valley CSD: 61%
Cambria CSD: 77%
Nipomo CSD: 60%
San Simeon CSD: 65%
Templeton CSD: 65%
Oceano CSD: 54%
Linne CSD: 75%
Squire Canyon CSD: 79%
Heritage Ranch CSD: 65%
Independence Ranch CSD: 73%
Avila Beach CSD: 67%
Los Osos CSD: 74%
San Miguel CSD: 47%
Ground Squirrel Hollow CSD: 66%
Turnout Rate by Supervisorial District
District 1: 63%
District 2: 71%
District 3: 66%
District 4: 65%
District 5: 65%
SLO County’s final results for Proposition 50 came in at 54.71% Yes and 45.29% No. A copy of the certified results can be found on the Elections website at slovote.com/november2025, and a link to the Statement of Votes Cast will be added to the same page.
