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# Albany youth voting set for school board as city effort stalls
- URL: https://www.albanyscanner.com/2026/09/18/city/albany-youth-voting-set-for-school-board-city-effort-stalls/
- Published: 2026-09-18T00:09:15.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-18T00:33:39.000Z
- Description: Albany officials say delays by the county registrar left too little time to fully implement Measure V.
- Author: Allyson Aleksey
- Tags: City, Election 2026, Elections, Board of Education, Albany City Council, Albany Unified School District, Sara Stone, #articles

With [November’s election](https://www.albanyscanner.com/topic/elections/) approaching, Albany teens will get their first chance to vote in a local school board race, nearly two years after voters approved lowering the voting age.

In 2024, Albany voters approved [Measure V](https://acvote.alamedacountyca.gov/acvote-assets/02%5Felection%5Finformation/PDFs/20241105/en/Measures/14%20-%20Measure%20V%20-%20City%20of%20Albany%20-%20Youth%20Voting.pdf?ref=albanyscanner.com), with 64% in favor. The measure amended the city charter to allow eligible 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in Albany municipal and school district elections once officials determined the change was feasible.

Nearly two years later, that vision has yet to be fully realized.

Albany spokesman Brennen Brown said the city is still waiting for details from the [Alameda County registrar of voters](https://acvote.alamedacountyca.gov/index?ref=albanyscanner.com) (ROV) about how to create the new system to accommodate youth voters and how much it will cost.

The city has been seeking those details and "continuing to work with the ROV" since November 2024, Brown said.

Meanwhile, the City Council [approved a resolution in July](https://www.albanyca.gov/files/assets/city/v/1/02-government/documents/resolutions/2026/reso-2026-60-authorizing-youth-voting-to-be-included-in-boe-election.pdf?ref=albanyscanner.com) allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in November’s school board election, after the [Albany Unified School District](https://www.albanyscanner.com/topic/albany-unified-school-district/) determined the cost was manageable.

## Albany officials blame county for delays

Albany Councilman Preston Jordan said delays by the ROV's office had prevented the city from moving forward with youth voting for council in time for the November election.

Beginning in March 2025, the Albany city clerk repeatedly sought information from then-Deputy Registrar of Voters Cynthia Cornejo, Jordan said. But she often failed to respond. When she did, the answers left out requested information or promised details that never came.

Cornejo now serves as interim ROV for Alameda County.

The [Albany City Council](https://www.albanyscanner.com/topic/albany-city-council/) did not hear back from Cornejo until August, following a formal request from the city clerk and a letter from Albany's mayor, Jordan said. 

At the time, she said she had already given Albany information about youth voting, which did "not accord with the City Clerk's record," according to Jordan.

Cornejo told officials that her office was still trying to figure out whether it needed a separate system for municipal youth voting and what other changes might be necessary.

Jordan said Cornejo had created a situation where there wasn't enough time to proceed.

This week, Cornejo told Albany Scanner that eligible Albany youth will be able to vote for school board and that all preregistered youth voters would get a ballot and voter guide in the mail.

As for the council races and Albany ballot measures, she said only that "We began working with the City of Albany on their youth voting program."

## How youth voting came together for Albany schools

While the city’s broader effort remains unresolved, the Albany Unified School District and Board of Education worked to make youth voting possible for November's school board election, [Superintendent Sara Stone](https://www.albanyscanner.com/topic/sara-stone/) told Albany Scanner this week. 

But it was no easy feat. 

Stone said the district encountered similar difficulties getting answers from the ROV's office.

The fact that 16- and 17-year-old Albany residents will be able to vote in any election this year is historic, Stone said, but would not have been possible if not "for a coalition of \[organizations\] and people that supported" the district.

That included the Albany Board of Education, Alameda County Office of Education and Josh Daniels, a staff attorney for the California School Boards Association, as well as students and school communities. 

"Any time we asked the registrar a question \[about implementing the measure\], or tried to work with them, they just didn't respond," Stone said.

Other East Bay cities have faced similar delays.

Berkeley voters approved [Measure Y1](https://ballotpedia.org/Berkeley,%5FCalifornia,%5FSchool%5FDirector%5FElection%5FYouth%5FVoting,%5FMeasure%5FY1%5F%28November%5F2016%29?ref=albanyscanner.com) in 2016, with 70% in favor, while Oakland voters approved [Measure QQ](https://ballotpedia.org/Oakland,%5FCalifornia,%5FMeasure%5FQQ,%5FAllow%5F16-Year-Olds%5Fto%5FVote%5Ffor%5FSchool%5FBoard%5FDirector%5FCharter%5FAmendment%5F%28November%5F2020%29?ref=albanyscanner.com) in 2020, with 68% in favor. Both measures lowered the voting age to 16 for school board elections.

Although implementation took years, Berkeley and Oakland [made history in 2024](https://acvote.alamedacountyca.gov/youthvoting?ref=albanyscanner.com) as the first California cities to allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote.

To make it happen, Alameda County developed a system to register youth voters and process ballots limited to school board elections. [KQED reported](https://www.kqed.org/news/12012537/young-people-in-oakland-and-berkeley-are-casting-ballots-for-the-first-time-heres-what-it-looks-like?ref=albanyscanner.com) that logistical issues at the ROV's office contributed to the delay.

Stone said Albany Unified was able to use existing agreements between the Berkeley and Oakland school districts and the ROV's office to help move its effort forward. 

Still, Albany’s measure presents additional logistical challenges because it applies to all local races, spokesman Brown said.

"The entire process has been really, really challenging, and I can see why the city is struggling," Stone said.

Jordan credited Albany school board member Becky Hopwood, who is [currently seeking reelection](https://www.albanyscanner.com/2026/09/04/schools/albany-school-board-candidate-forum/), with helping to secure the information needed to move the AUSD's effort forward.

Hopwood began attending monthly meetings of the youth voting movement in Berkeley and Oakland, Jordan said. 

The meetings were facilitated by Daniels, who has worked on youth voting efforts in Berkeley and Oakland and now serves as chief of policy and governance technologies for the California School Boards Association.

When Hopwood encountered similar difficulties getting a response from the ROV's office, she asked Daniels to request a cost estimate, Jordan said. Daniels was able to get what Albany could not, and then shared it with Hopwood.

According to current estimates, the per-voter cost for youth will be "approximately $80-$85, consistent with the cost of the November 2024 election."

Hopwood then brought a resolution to the school board authorizing the superintendent to pursue youth voting, Jordan said. 

Although the ROV's office initially said the estimate was unofficial and the district’s costs could differ, the county ultimately provided a letter with an estimate matching the original figure, he said.

"Hopwood's savvy bureaucracy hack worked where the City Clerk's and my direct approach failed," he said.

With early voting starting Oct. 5 and [mail-in ballots going out that week](https://www.facebook.com/CaliforniaSOS/posts/ca-voters-counties-will-begin-mailing-ballots-no-later-than-october-5th-you-can-/1498263055674501/), city staff say they will keep working toward allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in Albany's other races.

In [a July letter](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FKp39417VZ37JTBNGyMdE0BLuAH4byc%5F/view?ref=albanyscanner.com) to Alameda County Supervisor Nikki Fortunato Bas, Mayor McQuaid wrote the ROV's office had been "unresponsive," and asked for the county's assistance "in ensuring the City of Albany is served."

"Until the ROV provides the cost estimates and information on youth voting implementation procedure, the City of Albany is effectively on ‘hold’ in implementing the will of the voters," McQuaid wrote.

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