What is Absentee Voting?
Absentee voting is any voting that does not happen in person on election day. Each state/territory has individual polices on how residents must submit their absentee ballot. Click on your state/territory of residence to follow the link below to request an absentee ballot. To read about state/territory specific requirements, scroll to the bottom of this page.
Absentee Voting Polices by State
Excuse Required:
The following states require a citizen to provide a valid excuse in order to obtain an absentee ballot. Commonly accepted excuses include: voter's absence from their home county, illness or physical disability, prolonged absence from home country, a voter being required to work during polling hours, religious obligation, incarceration (non-felony).
-Alabama
-Arkansas
-Connecticut
-Delaware
-Indiana
-Kentucky
-Louisiana
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-Massachusetts
-Michigan
-Mississippi (no online form; contact your Circuit or Municipal Clerk to request a ballot via state link below)
-Missouri
-New Hampshire (no online form; contact Town Clerk to request a ballot via state link below)
-New York
-Pennsylvania
-Rhode Island
-South Carolina
-Tennessee
-Texas
-Virginia
-West Virginia
No Excuse Required:
-Alaska
-Arizona
-California
-District of Columbia
-Florida
-Georgia
-Hawaii
-Idaho
-Illinois
-Iowa
​
-Kansas
-Maine
-Maryland
-Minnesota
-Montana
-Nebraska
-Nevada
-New Jersey
-New Mexico
-North Carolina
-North Dakota
-Ohio
-Oklahoma
-South Dakota
-Utah
-Vermont
-Wisconsin
-Wyoming (no online form; contact your county clerk to request an absentee ballot via state link below)
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All Voting Conducted by Mail
These states conduct all voting by mail; there is no need for absentee ballots. For these state's links, you will be directed to the state's voter registration form.
-Colorado
-Oregon
-Washington
U.S. Territories
America Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands do not have any votes in the Electoral College, and thus, residents cannot vote in presidential elections, but residents can vote in primaries. For these five territories, their respective links will bring you absentee ballots/forms to be used in local and primary elections. Washington D.C. does has votes in the Electoral College, meaning residents can vote in presidential elections. Washington D.C.'s link will bring you to an absentee ballot/form which can be used for local and presidential elections.
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To read more about territories and voting in presidential elections: https://www.pri.org/stories/2016-11-01/millions-americans-cant-vote-president-because-where-they-live
State absentee voting information adapted from ballotpedia.org; updated April 2018.