Step One: Register to Vote
Registration is the first step. All states except North Dakota require voters to register. Some states do it automatically when you get a driver's license. Other states require voters to apply, either online or with a paper application. Eligible voters must be U.S. citizens, legal residents of that state, of legal age and not barred by courts for a criminal or mental health reason.
Voter registration has never been easier. Forty states and Washington, D.C., have online portals. (Here are their state-by-state links from the National Conference of State Legislatures.) The other states require voters to fill out and return forms (found on the National Association of Secretaries of State's Can I Vote website). There's also a federal registration form found in post offices to be mailed in. (Here's that form in 15 languages.) Registering online is best. You enter your information, which lowers the chance of typos introduced when paper registration data is entered by others. Your signature, most likely, will be taken from your driver's license or state-issued ID.
The Can I Vote website has a directory and contact information for local election officials in every state if you have any questions. It also has links to check and update your voter registration information. Everyone should double-check their status and information. Another government website, USA.gov, has a portal to do this with explanatory videos you might find helpful.
Is Your Information Current?
Why check your voter registration file? Your name and address are where election officials find you. This is where they will send notices, applications to receive your ballot in the mail, and your ballot if you're voting from home. (There are several ways to return ballots, which we'll get to.) Poll workers use this same information to check in voters before giving them a ballot. They see if it matches your ID. It's also used to vet ballot-return envelopes before opening and counting the votes inside it. Ballots can get rejected if this information isn't in sync.
Be sure your information is accurate. Is your name spelled correctly? Are you using a middle initial? Is there a space or a hyphen between a compound name? If it is wrong, update it. If you're an infrequent voter or moved recently, you may not be listed in the voter rolls because you have been moved to inactive status. If you're not listed in the voter rolls, re-register.
Has your signature changed significantly in recent years? (Look at your driver's license.) Are you applying online for a mailed-out ballot but worry that your voter file signature might not be current? You can fix that. Simply download a form at the county or state portal where you are checking your registration information. Print it, sign it, and mail it in. Do this a week or so before applying for a mailed-out ballot. (That gives election officials time to update your records.)
Whether registering, checking your information, updating it or requesting a mailed-out ballot, use government websites, especially at the county level. Don't use portals from activist groups, campaigns or apps. Why not? Local officials are sending your ballot, checking you in at polls and counting your vote. Make sure their information about you is correct. Don't rely on middlemen.
Government agencies also have better cybersecurity in 2020 than outside groups, according to experts who track disinformation and disruptions. If anything goes awry, you have a history of interacting with your local election office. (As a smart precaution, if you do register or update your voter file online, take a screenshot. That's a record you can use if questions arise later on.)
Back to voter registration basics. Even though this guide is being published in late summer, be aware that states have registration deadlines. (Here's a state-by-state list.) The longest deadlines are a month before November 3.
As a final safeguard, 21 states and Washington, D.C., let you register and vote at the same time. This same-day option is probably not the best strategy to vote in the pandemic, however, because it takes time and there will not be as many polling places this fall as in prior years. (Poll workers historically are older and more vulnerable to COVID-19, so many are declining to serve.)
Nonetheless, from west to east, the same-day registration states are Hawaii, California, Nevada, Idaho, Washington, Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Maryland, the District of Columbia, Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. (New Mexico and North Carolina allow registration at early voting sites, but not on Election Day.)
Decide: A Mail Ballot or Voting in Person?
After registering, voters will need to know where to go to vote and how to return their ballot.
Voters have three choices: from home with a mailed-out ballot; in person at an early voting site; or in person at an Election Day polling place.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
