Thousands of mail-in ballots are not counted every election. The vast majority are tossed because they arrive too late. Remember, the ballot must be in your county registrar’s office by 8 pm election day. A postmark isn’t good enough.

So, if you haven’t mailed already, don’t even try. Take your mail-in ballot to your county elections office. Or take it to the polls on election day in the county where you are registered.

Also, remember to sign the ballot envelope. Your ballot cannot be counted if the envelope is not signed. For those who think they are doing their absent college student or aging parent a favor by filling out their ballot and signing the envelope for them - forget it. The signature on the envelope has to match the signature on file at the registrar’s office. If the signatures don’t match, the ballot can’t be counted.

To recap:  Make sure your ballot gets into the registrar’s office or is dropped off at a polling place by 8 pm election day. And don’t forget to sign the ballot envelope.

One more thing. This is an historic election. Don’t miss it. Exercise your precious right. Vote.

Ginger Rutland writes for The Sacramento Bee opinion pages.