Voters in Santa Clara county will no longer be able to cast ballots at neighborhood polling places.
Beginning with the March 2020 primary, the county will replace its 850 polling precincts with 125 so-called "voting centers" around the county that will be open in the run-up to Election Day.
"The polling place model that we currently have in our county was created over a century ago, so this is a more modern, up-to-date voting model, which allows for greater convenience for the voters," said Santa Clara County Registrar Shannon Bushey.
All registered voters will receive their ballot in the mail and be able to drop it off at any of the centers. They'll also be able to get a replacement ballot there and register to vote at the last minute, which was not possible under the old system.
"For some voters, it may make them drive a little bit further," Bushey said.
In Santa Clara county, almost 80 percent of voters cast their ballots through the mail.
A handful of other California counties have already adopted a similar model.
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