Cal. ELEC § 14300
This is the official text of Cal. ELEC § 14300, part of California’s Elections Code — governs how elections are conducted, including voter registration, ballots, and campaign rules.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
Official statutory text
(a) In the case of an election for a state or federal office, each polling place using a direct recording electronic voting system, as defined by Section 19271, the elections official shall provide paper ballots equivalent to the following percentages:
(1) For a statewide general election, no less than 10 percent of the registered voters in the polling place.
(2) For a statewide direct primary election, for each partisan ballot form for which at least 10 percent of the registered voters in the polling place are eligible to request, no less than 5 percent of the registered voters in the precinct eligible to request that ballot form at the polling place. For nonpartisan voters, the total number of paper ballots among all ballot forms that they are eligible to request shall be no less than 5 percent of registered nonpartisan voters at the polling place.
(3) For any other state or federal election contest, no less than 5 percent of registered voters at the polling place.
(4) For purposes of this section, the number of registered voters shall be based on the registration on the 88th day prior to the day of the election.
(b) The elections official shall establish procedures for the use of the paper ballots described in this section in the event the direct recording electronic voting system becomes nonfunctional.
(c) Upon request, the precinct board shall provide a paper ballot to a voter, regardless of the availability of the direct recording electronic voting system, as long as supplies remain available.
(d) The paper ballots described in this section may consist of provisional ballots.
(e) Any vote cast on a provisional ballot subject to this section by an otherwise qualified voter shall be counted as a regular ballot and shall not be subject to the requirements of Section 14310.
(f) In elections conducted using voter centers, the elections official shall provide a sufficient amount of ballot stock to be used for printing ballots in each vote center.
(1) For a statewide general election, no less than 10 percent of the registered voters in the polling place.
(2) For a statewide direct primary election, for each partisan ballot form for which at least 10 percent of the registered voters in the polling place are eligible to request, no less than 5 percent of the registered voters in the precinct eligible to request that ballot form at the polling place. For nonpartisan voters, the total number of paper ballots among all ballot forms that they are eligible to request shall be no less than 5 percent of registered nonpartisan voters at the polling place.
(3) For any other state or federal election contest, no less than 5 percent of registered voters at the polling place.
(4) For purposes of this section, the number of registered voters shall be based on the registration on the 88th day prior to the day of the election.
(b) The elections official shall establish procedures for the use of the paper ballots described in this section in the event the direct recording electronic voting system becomes nonfunctional.
(c) Upon request, the precinct board shall provide a paper ballot to a voter, regardless of the availability of the direct recording electronic voting system, as long as supplies remain available.
(d) The paper ballots described in this section may consist of provisional ballots.
(e) Any vote cast on a provisional ballot subject to this section by an otherwise qualified voter shall be counted as a regular ballot and shall not be subject to the requirements of Section 14310.
(f) In elections conducted using voter centers, the elections official shall provide a sufficient amount of ballot stock to be used for printing ballots in each vote center.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in California?
Find a California lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.