CA General 2026
mail planning
Mail drop calendar, FPPC compliance notes, and BMEU induction windows for the November 2026 California General.
The November 3, 2026 California General is the highest-turnout election in the state's four-year cycle and the largest direct-mail spend of any cycle. VBM ballots are in every California voter's hands starting October 6 — every mail decision works backwards from that date.
October is the busiest month of the year for SoCal union print shops. We hold dedicated weekend press time in October of even-numbered years; campaigns that book by Labor Day get the press windows they want, campaigns that wait until October compete with everyone else for whatever remains.
General-election mail planning should include the redistricting overlay: post-2024 district lines, multilingual outreach standards in Spanish, Vietnamese, Korean, Chinese, and Tagalog, and FPPC disclaimer review for every piece — including IE top-two contributor formatting and slate mail boxes.
Recommended mail waves
Open the conversation; establish identity before VBM ballots land.
Contrast and reinforcement.
Drive completion the week after ballots arrive.
Second push during the highest-completion week.
Drop deadlines, drop box locations, polling place hours.
Full milestone calendar
- 2026-08-10Candidate filing for write-insWrite-in candidate filing deadline for the General.
- 2026-09-15Recommended persuasion drop #1Open the persuasion mail series before voters are saturated with TV and digital.
- 2026-09-29Recommended persuasion drop #2Second persuasion wave before VBM ballots mail.
- 2026-10-06VBM ballots mailedAll registered California voters receive a vote-by-mail ballot in this window.
- 2026-10-13Recommended ballot-chase drop #1First chase mail — ballot is on the kitchen counter.
- 2026-10-19Recommended ballot-chase drop #2Second chase mail — push completion in the highest-turnout week of the cycle.
- 2026-10-27Recommended GOTV dropFinal GOTV mail — ballot drop deadlines, polling place hours, drop box locations.
- 2026-11-03Election DayPolls open 7 AM, close 8 PM. VBM ballots postmarked by today and received within 7 days count.
Planning mail for CA General 2026?
We hold dedicated weekend press time for California rush political mail. Book your press windows now.