ARKANSAS, USA — As Election Day nears, deadlines are quickly approaching for Arkansas voters who plan to vote via absentee ballot.
If you cannot physically get to the polls to vote, you might qualify to vote absentee. A list of qualifications can be found here.
Completing the application:
You can download the application for an absentee ballot on the Arkansas Secretary of State’s website or through your local County Clerk’s office.
On the application, you will fill out your personal information (name, date of birth, address, and signature). You will also select the reason you are voting absentee and how you want to receive your absentee ballot (via mail, in person (designated bearer from the County Clerk’s office), or digitally (this option is for Uniformed Service Member, Merchant Marine member, or Overseas Citizen voters only).
Returning the application:
If you want to receive your ballot by mail, your application must be emailed, faxed, or physically delivered to your County Clerk’s office by the end of the day on Oct. 29.
If you want to pick up your absentee ballot in person or have it picked up by a designated bearer from the County Clerk’s office, your application must be in the County Clerk’s office by the end of the day Friday, Nov. 1.
Completing your absentee ballot:
After you return your application, you will receive your absentee ballot and a voter statement that you must fill out.
The voter statement requires you to provide the same information as the application (name, address, date of birth, and signature).
Election officials will compare the information on your voter statement to the information on your application to ensure it matches.
“The voter statement is what we're using to make sure that the ballot that we're receiving is coming from the person who requested the ballot,” said Jennifer Price, Executive Director of the Washington County Election Commission. “...All of that information helps us make sure that the ballot was one that was requested and then returned by that individual.”
When voting absentee, it is especially crucial that all personal information is correct and complete. For security reasons, a small discrepancy on the voter statement could result in your vote not counting.
“If something is missing off of your voter statement, there's not a chance for a voter to come back and fix that mistake,” Price said. “Sometimes that mistake can be just as simple as, I write down my month and day of my birthday correctly, but instead of writing the year, I write ‘2024.’ That's going to cause your ballot to be rejected, so really look over that voter statement. Have someone else look it over, just so that you know that it's correct.”
Along with the voter statement and the completed ballot, absentee voters will also need to include a copy of an approved photo ID.
The absentee ballot will come with voting instructions and the envelopes needed to return the required documents.
Returning your absentee ballot:
Your absentee ballot must be delivered in person to your local county clerk’s office by the end of the day Friday, Nov. 1, or received by the County Clerk’s office in the mail on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5.
You can check the status of your absentee ballot on the Secretary of State’s website. The website will show the date your ballot was mailed to you, when/if your ballot was received in the County Clerk’s office, and your ballot status (accepted or rejected).
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