Electronic Voting:
Is it Right for Your Association?
Jacqueline Pagano, Esq., Roseman Law, APC
With the signing of California Assembly Bill 2159 into law, California homeowner associations have the option of utilizing electronic balloting for qualifying membership votes starting in 2025. This change presents a signifi cant opportunity for associations to modernize their voting processes, increase accessibility, and streamline operations. Transitioning to electronic voting, however, requires thoughtful preparation and a clear understanding of the benefi ts and challenges.
Associations wishing to utilize electronic voting must adopt new election rules (a process which should commence at least four to six months before the next election) and adhere to the numerous procedures, deadlines, and requirements of the new law. Said requirements were discussed in-depth in a prior publication.
While association boards are understandably excited about the prospect of conducting electronic votes, there are several considerations which should play
into deciding whether electronic voting is right for your community.
There are numerous benefi ts to be derived from electronic voting. First and foremost, it can lead to signifi cant cost savings by reducing expenses associated with printing, mailing, and manually processing paper ballots. In addition, electronic voting streamlines the election process, enabling votes to be tabulated in seconds. This increased effi ciency and cost savings will
likely appeal to larger associations or those
with frequent elections. Utilizing electronic voting for votes on proposed restatements of governing documents will be of particular value, given that the full texts of the restated documents may be
enrolled in electronic voting, rather than having to be printed 18 January | February 2025
and mailed to all members. Electronic voting may not be used for votes involving regular or special assessments pursuant to Civil Code section 5605.
While electronic voting brings many benefi ts, boards must consider the practicalities of implementation. Unless an association has 100% enrollment in electronic voting, with emails on fi le for all members and no members exercising their right to opt-out of electronic voting at least 90 days before an election, associations will have to conduct a hybrid election, sending paper ballots to some members and electronic ballots to others. Each type of ballot will need to comply with the specifi c requirements of the Civil Code, making the inspector of elections’ job more diffi cult and increasing the chances of error. Given the considerable duties imposed upon the inspector of elections with respect to conducting electronic votes, utilizing the services of a professional inspector of elections is recommended. Associations which have traditionally used volunteer homeowners as inspectors will need to weigh the potential cost savings of utilizing electronic ballots (which likely depends on the size of the association and level of enrollment in electronic voting) against the increased cost of hiring a professional inspector.
provided electronically to members
To implement electronic voting, the new election rules which boards are required to adopt must prohibit fl oor nominations. This means that fl oor nominations and write-in candidates can no longer be permitted in director elections, a prospect which may be undesirable for some associations. Utilizing electronic voting may further complicate and potentially prohibit members from voting by proxy (if authorized by the bylaws). While voting by proxy has become mainly obsolete in the age of mail-in, and now electronic, secret ballots,
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