This Saturday, September 19th, is the day when absentee ballots for military service members, spouses, and dependents start getting sent out. Get your stuff ready TODAY to make sure you get your ballot ASAP.
Step 1: Are you registered to vote?
If you don’t know whether you’re already registered, you can use the form on this page to check your registration status.
If you’re not registered yet,
- Option 1: If you’re a military service member or dependent, and you’ll be away from your voting address on November 3, register to vote here.
- Option 2: Whether you’re military or not, if you’ll be living at your voting address on November 3, register to vote here.
Not sure what your voting address is supposed to be? Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you figure it out.
Step 2: Request your absentee ballot
A lot of people prefer to vote through the mail this year, due to COVID-19. But if you’re more of a vote-in-person kinda person, skip to Step 3!
If you used the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) in Option 1 above, congratulations! You automatically requested an absentee ballot — you’re all set to vote!
If you used Option 2 above, you may need to request an absentee ballot…
- These states will automatically send you an absentee ballot: CA, CO, DC, HI, NV, NJ, OR, UT, VT, and WA
- These states/territories let any voter request an absentee ballot, no excuse: AK, AZ, FL, GA, Guam, ID, IL, IA, KS, ME, MI, MN MT, NE, NM, NC, ND, OH, PA, Puerto Rico, RI, SD, VA, WI, and WY
- These states will require an excuse, and fear of COVID-19 counts: AL, AR, CT, DE, KY, MA, MO, NH, NY, OK, TN, and WV
- These states will require an excuse, and fear of COVID-19 doesn’t count: IN, LA, MS, SC, and TX
If your state requires a request to vote absentee, find that form here.
Step 3: Get ready to vote!
Make a plan today: Once you get your ballot, when and how will you send it back? If you’re voting in person, find your polling place here.
Let us know if you have any questions about voting.
About the Military Vote Coalition
We are a nonpartisan coalition of 17 military and veteran nonprofits, united by our mission to promote voting participation in this community.