Absentee voting for presidential election begins in Virginia on Friday

Absentee voting for the November 8 presidential election starts statewide on Friday.

Qualified Virginia voters may vote absentee in-person at their local voter registration office or vote absentee by mail.  To vote absentee, registered voters must meet one of the 19 eligibility requirements listed on the Virginia Absentee Ballot Application.

“The Department of Elections offers many online tools to provide voters the information they need to have a positive experience on Election Day.  Virginia voters can find everything they need to know about the upcoming election at vote.virginia.gov,” said Edgardo Cortés, the Commissioner of Elections.

In-person absentee voting is available at local voter registration offices Monday through Friday during regular office hours and on Saturday, October 29^th and Saturday, November 5^th.

The last day for in-person absentee voting is Saturday, November 5, 2016.  Office hours and locations for in-person absentee voting vary by locality and are available atvote.virginia.gov.

Voters who want to vote an absentee ballot by mail must apply before 5:00pm on Tuesday, November 1^st.  If you need to request a ballot by mail, we advise applying as early as possible to account for any potential delays in mail delivery.  Absentee ballots by mail must be returned by 7:00pm on Election Day.  Voters can request an absentee ballot online using the Department’s secure online Citizen Portal at vote.virginia.gov.

Eligible Virginians may register to vote online at vote.virginia.gov or by submitting a completed voter registration form to their local general registrar’s office.  The last day to register to vote for the Presidential Election is October 17, 2016.  Registrations must be received or postmarked by this date.

Virginia law requires voters to present an acceptable photo ID when voting in-person.  For a list of acceptable forms of photo identification, or to find out how to obtain a free Virginia Voter Photo ID Card, please visit vote.virginia.gov.  Voters can also find information about the upcoming election and check their registration status on the site.  The Department of Elections’ toll free number is 1-800-552-9745.