Students registered as permanent vote by mail voters in Alameda County can drop off their ballots on campus.
The Cowell Building will be the location for absentee voters to drop off their ballots. People who are registered with their Mills address can also drop off their ballots here.
According to Associate Dean of Operations Kennedy Golden, Cowell has been a polling precinct for approximately five years. Cowell is considered a polling precinct, which is different than a polling location — precincts only take vote by mail ballots, while locations offer voters the ability to drop off vote by mail ballots or to vote in person.
Golden said Mills wants to have a polling location for non-absentee voters.
“We have asked for the last 20 years for Mills to be a polling place,” Golden said.
The Alameda County Registrar of Voters confirmed that Mills College’s voting precinct does not have an official polling location. In order for Mills to have its own polling location, there needs to be 250 active voters registered with the campus address. According to the Registrar of Voters, there are 500 registered, but less than 250 are active voters.
The Division of Student Life and Cowell are only providing the building for polling purposes. Official poll workers and volunteers with Alameda County will be in charge of the polling precinct. Mills has also waved the $50 compensation offered by the city to people or businesses who volunteer their property as a polling location or precinct.
People registered with their Mills address will be able to drop off their vote by mail ballots in Cowell between 7 a.m. and when the polls close at 8 p.m.
