Want to cast your ballot in person? Need a replacement ballot or help registering to vote?

You’re in luck: The first batch of vote centers open for California’s special election on redistricting on Saturday, Oct. 25.

Vote centers offer a range of services. They are places for people to return their ballots in person, rather than by mail or at a drop box. But voters can also find help for their voting-related issues, obtain a replacement ballot, or register to vote and cast a provisional ballot.

Southern California’s guide to Prop. 50, the 2025 redistricting election

Many vote centers open this weekend; another set of vote centers open on Saturday, Nov. 1. Check your county elections offices for specific locations and hours of operation.

On Election Day, Nov. 4, vote centers will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. (Remember, if you’re in line to vote at 8 p.m., you can stay in line and still vote.)

Keep in mind, not every county conducts elections under California’s Voter’s Choice Act, which expands early, in-person voting and utilizes vote centers as options for voters.

In Southern California, Los Angeles, Orange and Riverside counties operate under this model, as well as San Diego and Ventura counties.

San Bernardino County conducts elections using the traditional polling place model, though it does offer early voting sites available for residents. And with the use of electronic poll pads for voter check-in, said spokesperson David Wert, registered voters can cast their ballot at any polling place in the county.

You can find the nearest early voting or drop-off location through the California secretary of state’s website at www.caearlyvoting.sos.ca.gov. Simply input your county — you can also narrow your search by adding your city or ZIP code — and view nearby results in a list or on a map.

And aside from vote centers, secure drop boxes are also available for voters to cast a ballot.

Ballots, which were mailed to every registered voter at the beginning of October, can also be returned via U.S. Postal Service. They come with prepaid postage and return envelopes, and must be postmarked on or before Election Day, and arrive to county elections offices no later than seven days after Nov. 4, to be counted.

Find more information at your county elections office:

• L.A. County: www.lavote.gov/home/voting-elections

• Orange County: www.ocvote.gov

• Riverside County: www.voteinfo.net

• San Bernardino County: www.elections.sbcounty.gov

Staff writer Jeff Horseman contributed to this report.

A 41-year-old Ventura man is facing the possibility of life in prison after he sent a federal agent posing as both a dad and a daughter sexually explicit photos, authorities announced earlier this week.  

Trevor Lyons began speaking to the undercover agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in August 2024 on the Kik messaging app. At the time, the agent was posing as the father of a 12-year-old girl who used the name “UC Dad,” the L.A. Times reported.  

According to the indictment, Lyons responded, “Oooof. A tad young but do you have pics?” when the undercover officer gave him the age of his fictitious daughter. 

Federal officials also said Lyons told UC Dad that he wanted to talk to the young girl, saying, “I’d love to see how much of a freak she is.”  

The 41-year-old then offered photos of his own 17-year-old daughter from when she was 15 years old and continued to have sexually explicit conversations with UC Dad that month on Telegram.

In September 2024, Lyons added what he thought was UC Dad’s 12-year-old girl as a friend on Discord, telling her that he was 40 and asking if she had ever seen a penis before, the indictment details. As the conversations continued to escalate, investigators say he asked UC Dad’s daughter if she had ever performed oral sex and offered to teach her how before sending an explicit photo and video with a request that she perform it on him.  

Law enforcement seized various electronics from Lyons in December 2024, including an iPhone 16, an iPad and a Samsung Galaxy flip phone.  

In the indictment, filed in August this year, investigators allege Lyons had a yearslong history of distributing child pornography along with accusations that in May 2020, he coerced a minor to engage in sexually explicit acts for photographs that would be distributed as child sexual abuse materials.  

The 41-year-old, according to federal investigators, went by several usernames online, including Defi Samurai, Carly and Herbdoc.  

He was arrested Oct. 20 after a federal grand jury charged him in a nine-count felony indictment with sexual exploitation, attempted sexual exploitation of a child for the purpose of producing sexually explicit visual depiction, attempted enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity and distribution of child pornography, according to the FBI.  

“If convicted on all charges, Lyons faces a statutory maximum sentence of life in prison,” federal officials said.  

A man died Tuesday night after being struck by a big rig while running along southbound Interstate 5 northwest of Woodland in California’s Yolo County, officials said.

The California Highway Patrol’s Woodland division said it happened around 8 p.m. near the Interstate 505 interchange, between Dunnigan and Zamora. Crews were already responding to a nearby medical call and were able to arrive quickly, but the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

Witnesses told officers that an all-white big rig initially slowed down after the crash but then continued driving south on I-5 toward Sacramento. The CHP says the truck likely has damage to its front left corner.

The CHP Woodland is asking anyone who may have seen the crash or has information about the truck or its driver to contact their office.

Traffic in the area was not affected.