U.S. Customs and Border Protection arrested 40 undocumented people in Imperial Beach Monday after they were found in what agents are calling two smuggling houses.

The group was discovered at the Serenidad apartment complex on Elder Avenue after 1:30 p.m.

CBP said they were given consent by the residents to search the apartment when they arrived at the scene.

Once inside, agents found 22 undocumented people, according to CBP.

Agents then interviewed residents in the area and were notified of others who were undocumented in the same complex.

Just before 3:15 p.m., CBP agents searched a different apartment.

Here, they found 18 more undocumented people, according to CBP.

“Identifying and dismantling smuggling organizations is our top priority,” said Chief Patrol Agent Rodney Scott.

Of the 40 arrested, 36 were men and four were women. Their ages ranged from 16 to 46, CBP said.

One of the men was previously convicted for domestic violence, according to CBP.

Agents said all 40 were from Mexico.

The group was taken to a nearby CBP station for further processing.

CBP said it will continue to investigate.

Oscar Rodas stood quietly during his arraignment at the Vista Courthouse Tuesday as his lawyer entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf.

The 27-year-old Fallbrook man is accused of murder and discharging a firearm causing bodily harm during the Nov. 1 killing of his former girlfriend Yesenia Becerril.

Becerril, 20, was found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds on South Vine Street near South Main Avenue in Fallbrook.

Witnesses told NBC 7 after Becerril was shot, she tried to run for help at a nearby 7-Eleven and was shot again.

Becerril's family said the victim dated Rodas for six years and the relationship was toxic.

A recent breakup in the days leading up to the killing may have prompted the shooting, a family member said.

Rodas has a criminal history. He was convicted in 2012 for a gang-related offense and was on probation for a 2015 incident where he resisted an officer with force.

He is being held without bail. His next court date is Dec. 3. If convicted of both charges, he faces 15 years to life in prison.

Voters in the 49th District in San Diego and Orange counties were faced with a decision on who should represent them in Congress Tuesday.

The race is one of several contested congressional districts in California that could cause a shift in the balance of power. 

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District 49, which encompasses Encinitas, Oceanside, Vista, Carlsbad and a small part of Orange County, was represented by Republican U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa who announced his retirement in January.

Republican Diane Harkey has earned an endorsement of President Donald Trump who described her as "an extraordinary woman of great accomplishment & potential.

Democrat Mike Levin was praised in a speech by President Barack Obama as a champion for environmental issues and climate change. 

The race for the 49th District seat is one of the most closely-watched races in the country.

All eyes have been on the 50th Congressional District in eastern San Diego County as the incumbent, U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter, was recently indicted on federal criminal charges. 

Despite allegations that he misused campaign funds, Hunter was favored against his opponent, a first-time candidate in the largely GOP district.

The race is one of several contested congressional districts in California that could cause a shift in the balance of power. 

Democrat Ammar Campa-Najjar, 29, worked in the Obama administration. He is Latino and Arab-American who was born in San Diego and raised by his mother.

In the weeks leading up to the election, Hunter's campaign ran an ad saying Campa-Najjar changed his name to "hide his family's ties to terrorism" and now wants to "infiltrate" Congress.

There are currently 139,636 registered Republicans in the 50th district according to the Registrar of Voters. That is much higher than the 94,699 registered Democrats.

Hunter, 41, is one of two indicted Republican congressmen seeking re-election. The other is New York Rep. Chris Collins, accused of insider trading.

He and his wife, who served as his campaign chair, are accused of misusing more than $250,000 in campaign funds, including more than $400 on tequila shots at a bachelor party, $250 on airfare for a pet rabbit and $14,000 for an Italian vacation.

Both have pleaded not guilty to charges.

A woman was attacked and sexually assaulted Monday moments after she left a restaurant in the East Village neighborhood of San Diego, police said.

Now, investigators have released a sketch of the man they believe was responsible for the attack. 

The victim told police she was walking near 14th Street and Island Avenue at around 11:30 p.m. 

The staff at Amplified Kitchen and Beer Garden told NBC 7 the woman was at the restaurant and walked along Island to her car. She walked about a block away to an area where she was attacked by a man, believed to be a transient.

Officers say the woman was pulled into some bushes where she was sexually assaulted.

The woman then ran back to the restaurant where someone called the police, the restaurant staff told NBC 7.

The suspect has not been located, police said.

The attack is a cause of concern for people living, working and visiting the area that is home to some of the largest and most expensive housing developments in the city of San Diego.

It's also home to a large and sometimes aggressive transient community. 

"Homeless people tend to attack people here so that's very common for me to hear about," said City College student Corinne Gonzalez.

She took precautions and changed all of her classes to morning sessions so she doesn't have to walk in the area after dark. 

Desiree Cuicon goes to East Village to exercise and takes extra precautions.

"I feel like I have to go straight to my car, make sure nothing is hanging off me, not too many bags on me," Cuicon said.

Buildings near where the attack occurred have 24-hour security personnel that usually patrol the area.

Investigators describe the suspect as 40 to 50 years old, bald with a thin build, with bad body odor. He was last seen wearing a white shirt, according to SDPD.

The suspect also had a green blanket with him, police said. 

He left the victim and ran westbound on 1200 Island Avenue, police said. 

Anyone with information on the identity or location of the suspect can call the SDPD’s Sex Crimes Unit at (619) 531-2210 or the Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line at (888) 580-8477.

Some parents are upset after a Tierrasanta school pulled a music program from their fourth graders.

Kumeyaay Elementary School previously had a visual and performing arts (VAPA) music program for its fourth and fifth graders, but this year the younger kids were given something different.

“I was really surprised to see that my daughter’s experience is she doesn’t get to play an instrument in fourth grade,” said Sherry Schnell, a parent of one the affected students.

Schnell said she didn’t know about the cut program until after the first week of school. So, she decided to ask the district for an explanation.

“And what they said was they had worked with principals and VAPA departments, and they had limited resources so they were no longer able to provide it,” Schell told NBC 7.

The school had the same amount of funding as last year, but the allocation changed, according to the San Diego Unified School District’s Director of VAPA Department Russ Sperling.

Some schools were funded for fourth grade music, while others wanted to focus on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses, Sperling said.

“Right now, the district isn’t providing STEM, and they’re not providing fourth grade music, so I’m not seeing what that tradeoff is happening,” Schnell said.

Sperling’s response was that the school district was fighting for equity.

“The VAPA funding is geographically even, I should say,” Sperling said. “It is not equal, but it is equitable in its spread.”

The following schools had their fourth grade music program cut or reduced: Alice Birney, Carson, Edison, Golden Hill, Green, Kumeyaay, Lindberg-Schweitzer, Ross, and William Penn, according to the school district.

While these schools saw an increase in their music programming for forth graders: Audubon, Baker, Clay, Ellen Browning Scripps, Encanto, Kate Sessions, Marie Curie, Mason, Rolando Park, Tierrasanta, and Vista Grande, according to the school district.

Tierrasanta Elementary is roughly one mile away from Kumeyaay Elementary.

Sperling said parents have the choice to move from their neighborhood school. He also noted that magnet programs are available to help students find out what they’re really passionate about.

Scheduling issues and facilities may also affect how VAPA funds are distrusted, the district said.

The Election Day waiting game is stressful for the candidates, but it’s also stressful for all the people behind the scenes who knocked on doors, stood on corners, put up signs, and made countless phone calls to support those candidates or propositions.

Some of those people include high school students participating in their first elections.

“It’s not as much stressful as it is nervous,” said Chula Vista High School senior Jared Rubio.

The 18-year-old was operating a phone bank in Chula Vista as the hours ticked away on Election Day.

Rubio said he was nervous because he invested his personal time in something he believes in.

“I’ve put in about a hundred hours,” said Rubio.

“I’m very anxious,” said fellow senior Miguel Davis. “I’ve always been interested in politics.”

The Chula Vista High School students said the volunteering started as a school-mandated service assignment but turned into a passion project.

“I can’t imagine how people who are running feel," said Alexas Skipper, another high school senior.

“Kind of feel like an attachment to them,” said senior Zachary Savage. “I’ve worked with them and seen them first hand and talked to them.”

It’s a nervous energy felt by everyone from the candidates to the students.

“I’m nervous about the results but I know that I did all that I could have done,” said Savage.

San Diegans faced an estimated three-hour wait Tuesday at the San Diego County Registrar’s Office in Kearny Mesa.

“Most of us haven’t registered yet so that’s kind of why this line is so long. Because we’re really last-minute voting,” said one woman standing in the long line.

Other polling places in San Diego County are not experiencing this type of delay.

The registrar is the only place in the county offering conditional voting – where an individual can register to vote and then vote on the same day.

This is the second statewide election where conditional voter registration (CVR) is being offered. In June, the first time San Diego offered the process, 43 voters registered and voted on the same day.

“Our voice should be heard,” another woman said. “And I feel my voice matters.”

County officials said this has been the longest line ever at that location off of Ruffin Road.

Registrar of Voters Michael Vu said the county expects a 64 to 68 percent voter turnout. With 1.77 million voters registered in the county, 64 percent would be 1.13 million votes. 

As of 5 p.m., the registrar's office said it had received 482,492 mail-in ballots returned including early voting. 

Polls close at 8 p.m. in San Diego County. Anyone standing in the line as of 8 p.m. will be able to vote even if it takes several hours to process all of those people in line, registrar officials said.

At the start of election night, when results first started dripping in, liberal twitter started to panic: Was this 2016 all over again?

In the end, the Democrats delivered a big win, swinging enough seats from Red to Blue to take control of the House of Representatives.

But for a few tense hours, it seemed like deja vu.

Writer Touré tweeted: "It’s funny, this is just about the time I started freaking out on Election Day 2016. And tonight there’s still not much to be happy about. Yet." 

That tone was set early by MSNBC pundit and former Clinton stragetist James Carville, who gave a dour prognosis on MSNBC while analyzing results in Florida, where Democrat Andrew Gillum lost the governor's race to Ron DeSantis and Bill Nelson lost to Rick Scott. 

The Blue Wave, Carville said, wasn't going to happen.

Twitter's response:

"James Carville just threw water on my parade."

"James Carville really stomped on my Democratic hopes & dreams. Stop talking to him msnbc."

As Republicans locked up key Senate seats, winning key races in Tennessee, North Dakota, Texas and more, the outlook appeared bleak for Democrats.

"I’m literally about to throw up."

But then a funny thing happened: A bunch of House races started to turn blue, just as the polls in the weeks leading up to the election predicted they would. 

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 29,  elected to Congress representing New York. She's the youngest woman to be elected to the House. 

Kansas elected Sharice Davids, the first lesbian Native American woman elected to Congress. 

First-time candidate Donna Shalala, 77, was elected to Congress in Florida, turning the 27th Congressional district blue after decades under Republican control. 

Kendra Horn is the first Democrat to win a Congressional seat in Oklahoma's 5th district in four decades.

And once again, James Carville set the tone.

"I can breathe again. James Carville is smiling."

"My mood is totally dictated by @JamesCarville. If he’s sad I’m sad. If he’s smiling, so am I."

See more reaction to the election results alluding to a flashback to 2016 as seen on Twitter. 

A stunning makeover is in the works for San Diego's downtown waterfront.

The proposed $1.6 billion project would replace Seaport Village, a popular but aging collection of bayfront shops and restaurants along Harbor Drive.

Developer Yehudi Gaffen and his partners proposed a complete teardown and rebuild of Seaport Village.

It would also have a vast extension of the existing property to encompass 70 acres of land and water. This would span from north of the Midway Museum down to the area around Embarcadero Park.

Gaffen presented his latest version of “Seaport San Diego” at a San Diego Unified Port Commission meeting Tuesday.

Highlights of the project include 10 acres of open space, a water element that extends north towards Harbor Drive, creating a water play area and a canal-like walkway through a portion of the development.

If approved by port commissioners, Seaport San Diego would include five hotels at different price points, restaurants, retail and office spaces, an aquarium, and an observation tower.

“So, it’s a place that’s memorable, that’s unique, that has authentic San Diego stores and food offerings, that you can partake of only in San Diego,” Gaffen told NBC 7.

Renderings of the project also show a Veterans’ Museum and park and a commercial fish processing plant near the Midway Museum.

But the huge scale of the project worries owners of the Fish Market, a very popular restaurant on the G Street “Mole.”

“The 75,000 square food [Veterans’] museum was a bit of a surprise,” said Dwight Colton, a Fish Market executive.

Colton said there’s not sufficient parking in the area and predicted that traffic generated by the new project will cause constant gridlock on Harbor Drive and Market Street, neither of which can be widened.

“We don’t see any way that all three buildings could co-exist on G Street,” Colton said.

But one downtown resident told port commissioners that Seaport San Diego will energize the bayfront.

“It’s not just a bunch of hotels or just a bunch of shops,” said Alex Rolek. “You've got a lot of things coming together to activate this one space, and I think that's where it's really successful."

The developer understands some people will miss the laid-back feel at Seaport Village.

He promises to incorporate Seaport’s most endearing features, including the duck ponds, carousel, and appeal of small shops.

But Gaffen said Seaport Village can't last forever.

"We can't leave it like it is, because it's falling down. Sea level rise will ultimately flood it," said Gaffen. "So there's no way it can stay as it is."

Homes on Camp Pendleton and other military bases across the country were found to have mice infestations and mold problems, according to a Reuters report.

A letter signed by California Senators Diane Feinstein and Kamala Harris asked Department of Defense Secretary James Mattis and the Pentagon to conduct a fact-finding mission into the problems.

Lincoln Military Housing (LMH), a private company that owns and operates housing on military bases, told NBC 7 the report contains inaccuracies and omits important facts.

According to LMH, only 1 percent of the service requests in 2017 were for mold. The company also said that rodent issues are handled quickly with a follow-up.

Brian Lepore with the Government Accountability Office told NBC 7 the agency has already started putting together a housing study.

“We have been directed by the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee to conduct a review of the condition of the military privatized housing,” he said.

Lepore added that the review will give his office a sense of the condition of privatized homes and whether military families are satisfied with them.

The study was authorized in September due in part to a previous Reuters report detailing the discovery of lead paint in 40 Army base homes.

Camp Pendleton referred NBC 7 to the base’s webpage where housing complaints can be submitted.

The divisive, down-to-the-wire midterm elections dominated by President Donald Trump and his denunciation of immigrants ended with Democrats gaining control of the House for the first time since 2010, according to NBC News projections.

Victories in hard-fought races will enable the Democrats to take charge of committees, issue subpoenas and block parts of Trump's agenda. Nancy Pelosi, a target of many Republicans during the hard-fought election season, is expected to retake the role of Speaker of the House.

Here's a look at what could be in their plans as they wield power against a president who is under investigation for possibly conspiring with Russia to win his office but who has predicted he could work with Democrats.

Investigating the Trump Administration
Democratic leaders steered clear of talk of impeachment during the campaign, although activists such as Tom Steyer have raised it frequently, and they want to allow Special Counsel Robert Mueller to complete his investigation.

First off could be protecting Mueller's probe, a step the House Judiciary Committee unsuccessfully tried to take in September, with a bill that would have prevented Trump from firing him without good cause.

With control of just one chamber of Congress, Democrats likely can't protect Mueller legislatively. But with control of the House, they'll have other tools. 

Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler, who is on the Judiciary Committee, earlier requested hearings on Trump's use of his pardon power and his attacks on the FBI and the Justice Department. Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee issued a report separate from the Republicans' finding of no evidence of collusion in the 2016 election, and it could be used for future investigations. Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of California has said he wants to know whether Russians were laundering money through the Trump Organization.

And Democrats are poised to ask for Trump's tax records from the IRS through a seldom-used 1924 law, which says the treasury secretary must comply with such a request. The move would likely lead to a court battle with Trump, who has guarded his returns carefully.

Stabilizing Obamacare and Other Health Laws?
Even as Trump painted a grim picture of an America in danger of a caravan of asylum seekers from Central America, Democrats stayed focused on health care, which, in a turnaround, was the very issue that caused them to lose control of the House in 2010. But since then, Republicans have repeatedly failed to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, votes that Democrats used against them. Key to the debate: protection for pre-existing conditions, which last year's Republican bill weakened.

With Senate Majority Mitch McConnell threatening to try again to dismantle Obamacare, House Minority Nancy Pelosi said in an interview with The New York Times that Democrats would focus on improving it rather than immediately work to replace it with a single-payer system. Medicare for All is popular even among some Republicans. Democrats also will emphasize keeping down the price of prescription drugs, with some advocating allowing the federal government to negotiate Medicare drug prices, and increasing funding for birth control.

Infrastructure Projects That Might Have Bipartisan Appeal
House Democrats have proposed $1 trillion in infrastructure improvements to fix roads, modernize schools, enhance rail transportation, ports and airports, protect drinking water and expand broadband access. They say the work would create more than 16 million jobs.

Pelosi has said the package is a top priority for Democrats and it is one they might find agreement on with Trump. The president had campaigned on rebuilding the country's infrastructure in 2016. The White House wants to spark $1.3 trillion in spending from state and local governments and the private sector with $200 billion in federal spending.

To pay for the plan, some lawmakers back raising the federal gas tax.

Mitigating Climate Change
Pelosi told The New York Times that if the Democrats win the House she wants to revive a select committee on climate change, to prepare legislation on conserving energy and taking other steps to combat global warming and to educate the public on extreme weather. The Democrats could also investigate the administration's response to Hurricane Maria, which left Puerto Rico devastated.

Immigration Policy Oversight
Trump urged the U.S. Supreme Court this week to consider whether his administration can quickly end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program begun under President Barack Obama -- even before challenges make their way through federal courts. Democrats have opposed discontinuing the program, which has allowed 700,000 young people who are known as Dreamers and who were under 16 when they were brought to the U.S. to remain in the country. Their control of the House would enable the lawmakers to scrutinize all immigration policy. In an op-ed on NBCNews.com, Democratic Rep. Jimmy Gomez of California argued that the Oversight Committee would be able to put a spotlight on a senior adviser, Stephen Miller, who has driven the administration's attempts to restrict immigration -- from ending birthright citizenship to banning immigrants from certain Muslim countries to separating families at the U.S. Mexico border.

The story of the 2018 election has been full of upsets and surprises, but NBC is projecting that Democrats will take control of the House and Republicans will remain in control of the Senate.

Preliminary results are in regarding the future of the former NFL stadium property in the heart of San Diego's Mission Valley.

SoccerCity and SDSU West are the two competing proposals for the aging San Diego Credit Union Stadium at the junction of Interstates 8 and 15. 

The stadium, once home to the Chargers, sits on real estate owned by the city of San Diego and valued between $73 million and $110 million.

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If approved, Measure G would sell 132 acres of the land to San Diego State University or any SDSU affiliate. 

Known as SDSU West, the initiative would demolish the stadium and add extension buildings for SDSU, additional housing, and a stadium for either a football or a soccer team.  

If Measure E passes, the city would be able to lease 233 acres to Soccer City.

The San Diego River Park and SoccerCity Initiative would tear down the stadium to make room for a sports entertainment district, which would include housing, retail shops, a river park, and a new stadium for a Major League Soccer team. 

Both measures propose tearing down the stadium site to make room for housing, retail, and parkland but also have major differences. 

If both plans get more than 50 percent of the vote, the plan with the most votes wins. 

If neither reaches that threshold, it’s back to the drawing board.

With the 5-4 Democrat majority on the technically nonpartisan San Diego City Council guaranteed to continue, the results of today's election could give Democrats a 6-3 majority immune to Mayor Kevin Faulconer's veto.

A Democratic victory in District 2 or 6 would push the council majority to a veto-proof 6-3. Districts 4 and 8 both feature two Democrats in the general election.

Here's a look at preliminary results in the San Diego City Council races.

Early poll results are in regarding a possible change in the way the city of Del Mar makes land use decisions.

Measure P proposes an amendment to the Del Mar City Charter that would allow the city “maximum local control” over land use decisions consistent with the city’s Community Plan.

The amendment would exempt the city from all state land use and zoning laws, except where state preemption applies, and allow the city to adopt its own. It would also allow Del Mar to come up with its own process for granting land use entitlements.

Currently, the city’s charter follows general state laws when it comes to most legal matters.

If a majority votes yes on Measure P, the charter amendment will be adopted. If a majority votes no, no changes will be made.

Preliminary voting results are in for five different marijuana-related measures brought before voters in Chula Vista, La Mesa and Vista.

Chula Vista - Measure Q: Chula Vista Marijuana Taxes

Measure Q will decide the fate of marijuana dispensaries and manufacturers in Chula Vista.

If the yes votes prevail, licensed shops can open up and the city can tax manufacturing, cultivation and testing sites, as well as dispensaries and delivery services anywhere from 5 to 15 percent.

Manufacturing, cultivation and testing will be limited to industrial-zoned sites only, and those establishments will have to qualify for a permit.

Every applicant will have to pass a criminal background check, financial check, and have their site approved through the whole permit process. They’ll also need a plan for security and money handling.

According to City Councilmembers, some of the revenue from the tax would go toward setting up an enforcement unit focused on regulating legal pot shops and shutting down illegal ones. The rest of the revenue would go into the general fund.

Measure Q stipulates an eight-dispensary maximum in the city, and if the maximum is reached then only four additional delivery services will be allowed.

If the measure fails, the prohibition on pot in Chula Vista will remain -- as it stands, absolutely no legal marijuana manufacturing or dispensaries are allowed within city limits.

La Mesa - Measure V: Marijuana Tax Hike

Measure V proposes the establishment of a Cannabis Business Tax that would apply to all commercial marijuana businesses within the city.

Revenue from the tax would be deposited in the city's general fund and would be spent on police and fire protection, road repairs, neighborhood parks and other community services. The money would also help support efforts to shut down illegal dispensaries in the city and regulate legal medical marijuana businesses not subject to the proposed tax.

The tax is estimated to generate $1.5 to $2 million annually for La Mesa, according to the City Attorney.

Commercial marijuana cultivation businesses, or nurseries, would be taxed $1 to $10 per square foot of canopy space, and retail businesses would be taxed up to 6 percent on gross receipt amounts. The measure also allows the city to adjust the tax rates annually as long as they don't exceed limits approved by voters.

Currently, medical marijuana dispensaries, cultivators, and manufacturers are allowed under a conditional use permit, but all other medical and recreational businesses are prohibited.

A majority of yes votes means the tax is adopted, and a majority of no votes means the tax won't be established.

Vista - Measure AA: Taxing Future Marijuana Shops in Vista

Measure AA proposes a tax structure for marijuana businesses and grants the City Council authority to administrative rules regulating marijuana sales if marijuana businesses ever become legal in the city.

The tax calls for an initial 6 percent rate on adult-use retail sales that could adjust within a 0 to 12 percent range; an initial 5 percent rate on medical use retail sales that could adjust within a 0 to 10 percent range; an initial 4 percent rate on manufacturing businesses that could adjust within a 0 to 8 percent range; an initial 1 percent rate on testing businesses that could adjust within a 0 to 3.5 percent range; and a $14 per square foot tax on cultivation canopy space adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index.

Revenue from the tax would go to the city's general fund.

A yes vote would allow the Vista City Council to adopt the tax structure if marijuana businesses ever become legal.

Vista - Measure BB: Medical Marijuana Delivery in Vista

Measure BB would allow up to three delivery only (non-storefront) medical dispensaries and up to two product testing labs.

The allowed delivery businesses would be limited to industrial-zoned districts and would not be allowed within 1,000 feet of any public or private school with grades 1 through 12, any daycare, youth center, treatment center, youth-oriented business, public or private park, or homeless shelter, and must be 500 feet away from any residential zone.

If approved by voters, Measure BB will only be enacted if Measure AA is also approved.

Vista - Measure Z: Medical Marijuana Storefronts

Measure Z would allow at least 11 storefront medical marijuana dispensaries.

Allowed medical dispensaries could exist in any of Vista's commercial, industrial, business park, and mixed-use zoning districts, with certain restrictions on proximity to public or private schools and other dispensaries.

Medical dispensaries would pay a permanent tax equal to 7 percent of gross sales that would be deposited in the city's general fund.

NBC 7 Investigates partnered with ProPublica’s Electionland to investigate voter-related issues on Election Day in San Diego County. 

Here are some of the issues that we looked into: 

Carmel Valley Voters Off Rosters 

At the Pacific Trails Middle School polling location in Carmel Valley, 46 people showed up to vote but learned their names were not on the polling site’s roster. 

Michael Vu with San Diego County’s Registrar of Voters labeled it as an “isolated incident” and said the 46 voters were initially offered the opportunity to vote on a provisional ballot. 

After the issue was identified, Vu said a poll worker validated each person’s name with Registrar of Voters’ staff over the phone and all 46 individuals were able to vote by a standard ballot. 

Campaigning Close to Polling Locations in National City 

San Diego County Registrar of Voters staff investigated allegations of campaigns “electioneering” or handing out flyers too close to two polling locations in National City. 

On Tuesday morning, National City Mayor Ron Morrison contacted NBC 7 Investigates after posting on Facebook photos and videos of what he said were staff from local campaigns talking to voters less than 100-feet from the polling location entrances at Ira Harbison and El Toyen Elementary Schools. 

“This is in many cases illegal and at the very least inappropriate,” Morrison said in his Facebook post. 

According to the California Secretary of State office, it is illegal to “electioneer” or hand out items with a candidate’s name on them less than 100 feet from where people are voting.

Vu confirmed his staff addressed the allegations immediately but nothing illegal occurred. 

“In the El Toyon situation, the folks were 100ft from the polling place so no issue there,” Vu said by email. “In the Harbison location, our poll workers properly instructed the group that showed up this morning that they could not be near the poll site.” 

UCSD Precincts Running Out Of Ballots

UCSD students told NBC 7 and ProPublica that some precincts on-campus ran out of ballots by Tuesday afternoon. 

“Poll monitors report UCSD ran out of ballots tonight -- with people still in line,” a Twitter post from the nonprofit California Common Cause read. “Please encourage voters to #StayInLine.” 

Michael Workman, a spokesperson for San Diego County, said two out of the eight precincts on the UCSD campus were “low or out of English ballots” around 6:45 p.m. on Tuesday. Workman said the ballot count ran low only in the evening hours and all eight precincts had a sufficient amount of ballots earlier in the day. 

“No one would be turned away,” Workman said by email, adding that voters had other options of voting besides using ballots, including using touchscreen technology. 

Voters Claim Preference Changed to Mail-In Ballot Without Their Consent 

Throughout Election Day, NBC 7 Investigates and ProPublica heard from voters in San Diego County, as well as across the state, who said they arrived at their polling location only to find out they were labeled in the state’s system as voting by mail-in ballot. 

The voters said they did not choose to vote by mail-in ballot and in some cases, did not receive their ballot in the mail. In the end, those voters said poll workers encouraged them to vote by a provisional ballot. 

Vu said voters finding out at the polls that they were entered into the state's system as voting by mail is not uncommon. 

“There may be more occurrences or there may not, there is no way of gauging until after the election,” Vu said by email. 

A spokesperson for California's Department of Motor Vehicles said their office received only one complaint statewide from a voter who claimed they had not chosen to vote by mail-in ballot. After some research, the spokesperson said it turned out the voter was mistaken and had actually chosen to vote by mail previously. 

Sam Mahood, Press Secretary for California’s Secretary of State Alex Padilla, said the state’s voter hotline did not have an uptick of complaints about the issue. 

“It is important to remind voters that if there is any issue—their name is not on the polling place roster, they lost their vote-by-mail ballot—they have the right to request and cast a provisional ballot,” Mahood said by email. “Every provisional ballot is carefully checked by county elections officials and will be counted once the voter’s registration is verified and it is confirmed that they did not vote elsewhere.” 

More than 1.7-million voters were registered to vote in San Diego County. Vu said his office expected 64 to 68-percent of those registered to actually vote in this year’s midterm election. 

If you noticed problems while voting during the 2018 midterm elections on Tuesday, Nov. 6, please share below so we can help investigate them.