Here’s our most recent breakdown of what each key date means for new and young candidates running for elected office in the 2026 California Primary Election:
- Signatures-In-Lieu of Filing Fee (Thursday, December 11, 2025 – Wednesday, February 4, 2026): Instead of paying a fee to file your candidacy, you can gather signatures from voters in your jurisdiction (city, district, etc.) to support your campaign. Some smaller elections (special districts, library trustee, etc.) may have no filing fees. You have 56 days to do this.
- Filing Period (Monday, February 9 – Friday, March 6, 2026): This is the official window to submit your paperwork and officially run for office. You have 26 days to complete this.
- Candidate Statement Deadline (Wednesday, February 11, 2026): If you want your statement included in the voter information guide, submit it 2 days after filing begins. There is a filing fee for this service. Ask your county registrar of voters for the exact cost.
- Extension for Incumbents (Saturday, March 7 – Wednesday, March 11, 2026): If an incumbent doesn’t file, they get an additional 5 days to submit their paperwork.
- Certified List of Candidates (Thursday, March 26, 2026): By this date, the list of all official candidates will be finalized.
- Mailing of Ballots (Monday, May 4, 2026): Ballots for voting by mail are sent to registered voters, 14 days before the registration deadline.
- Voter Registration Deadline (Monday, May 18, 2026): This is the last day to register to vote and be eligible to cast a ballot in the election.
You’ll need to meet these deadlines to be a candidate and to have voters participate in your race.
Also remember, the last day to register to vote for the June 2, 2026, Primary Election is May 18, 2026.
Important Reminder for New Candidates:
Even if you’re using the Signatures-In-Lieu of Filing Fee option, most elected offices (mayor, schoolboard, congress, etc.) still require a specific number of qualified signatures to get on the ballot. This means you need to make sure that the signatures you gather meet the necessary qualifications and requirements. Be sure to check with your local elections office to confirm how many signatures you need and follow the correct process to ensure they count!
Examples
For example, to run for mayor of San Diego in 2024, candidates were required to collect at least 240 valid signatures from registered voters within the city. However, if a candidate wanted to waive the $500 filing fee, they could submit additional signatures—three extra valid signatures reduced the fee by $1. This means that to completely eliminate the filing fee, a candidate would have needed at least 1,740 valid signatures in total.
Another example was, in California’s 2024 election cycle, candidates aiming for the U.S. House of Representatives were required to pay a filing fee of 1% of the first year’s salary for that office. As of 2024, the annual salary for a U.S. Representative was $174,000, making the filing fee $1,740.
Alternatively, candidates could submit a minimum of 2,000 valid signatures from registered voters in their district in lieu of paying the filing fee. These signatures had to be submitted by November 8, 2023.
It’s important to note that while the filing fee was paid to the California Secretary of State, it had to be submitted through the candidate’s local county elections office by December 8, 2023