Ohio

On Election Day, the polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET. If there are voters waiting in line to cast their ballots at 7:30 p.m., the polls must remain open until everyone in line has voted.

Have questions or need more information? Call 1-866-OUR-VOTE (1-866-687-8683)!

All polling locations are listed at this link: https://www.ohiosos.gov/elections/voters/toolkit/polling-location/.

Registration Deadlines

• For registration deadlines, see How to Register below.

How to Check Your Registration: Voters can determine whether they are registered to vote at the following link: Am I Registered?.

You are eligible to vote in Ohio if you:

• Are a U.S. citizen
• Are a resident of Ohio
• Are at least 18 years old by Election Day
• Live in the precinct where you vote for at least 30 days prior to the election

You are NOT eligible to vote in Ohio if:

• You have been permanently disenfranchised for violating the election laws
• You are incarcerated (in prison or jail) for a felony conviction under the laws of this state, another state, or the United States
• You were disqualified from voting due to a court order

Restorative Requirements

• If you have completed a felony prison sentence, even if you are still on parole or probation, then you are immediately eligible to register to vote.

You are able to pre-register:

• if you will be 18 by Election Day

If you will be 18 on or before the general election, you may vote in the primary election to nominate candidates, but you cannot vote on issues or party central committees until you are 18

How to register 

• Ohio Municipal General Elections
  • Register By: Tue Oct 10, 2023
  • Submit a Printed Application: Postmarked by Sun Oct 8, 2023

To register online, or check registration status, click here:  https://olvr.ohiosos.gov.

To register by mail, fill out the following form:

• https://www.ohiosos.gov/globalassets/elections/forms/vr_form_04-2015.pdf

In person registration is also available at many government offices, as explained here: https://www.ohiosos.gov/elections/voters/register/#register

Voters must be a resident of Ohio for at least 30 days immediately before the election, and must register at least 30 days before the election.

If You Want to Vote Absentee, requests may be made:

• By Mail

Absentee Ballots may be returned:

• In-Person
• By Mail

Ohio Municipal General Elections

Ballot Request:

• Received by Tue Oct 31, 2023
• In-Person, Received by Tue Oct 31, 2023

Ballot Return:

• Postmarked by Mon Nov 6, 2023
• Post Received by Sat Nov 11, 2023
• Received in Dropbox by Tue Nov 7, 2023 7:30PM CST

Request an absentee ballot by printing and mailing the form found at the following links to the voter’s county board of elections no later than October 31, 2023:

• Ohio Absentee Ballot – Ohio Secretary of State (ohiosos.gov)
• https://www.sos.state.oh.us/globalassets/elections/forms/11-a_english.pdf (English);
• https://www.sos.state.oh.us/globalassets/elections/forms/11-a_spanish.pdf (Spanish) 

Voters with a qualifying disability should use Form 11-G, available at VoteOhio.gov or a board of elections’ website to request a ballot by assistive technology. For more information contact the  ADA coordinator at 614.387.6039 or at https://www.sos.state.oh.us/elections/voters/voters-with-disabilities/contact-us-ada-coordinator/ or the Secretary of State’s office at 877.767.6446.

Absentee ballots can be returned by:

• Mailing to the county board of elections (County Directory).  If the voter is returning their absentee ballot by mail, the ballot must be postmarked by no later than the day before Election Day (November 6, 2023). To be counted, the ballot must be received by the voter’s county board of elections no later than four (4) days after Election day (Saturday, November 11, 2023) for the 2023 General Election. Use method that shows postmark date: such as label purchased at PO.  If using stamps, request a postmark.
• Bringing the ballot in person to the county board of elections by 7:30pm on Election Day (Tuesday, November 7, 2023).  The one drop box located at each county board of elections is the only drop box in each county. Only the voter or their near relative may return the ballot.

Check status of your mail ballot Track your ballot

Vote early at your county’s board of elections. Locations can be found here:  Early Voting

Have questions or need more information? Call 1-866-OUR-VOTE (1-866-687-8683)!

Voter Registration

To register to vote in Ohio you should provide one of the following:

• Your Ohio Driver’s License Number
• Your Ohio ID Number
• Last Four Digits of your Social Security Number

Voting In-Person

In Ohio, you need to show a current, valid ID to vote. Your ID must include your name (which must substantially conform to your name as it appears in the poll list), photo, address, and expiration date that has not passed. You may use ID from this list:

• Valid Ohio Driver’s License
• Ohio ID Card
• ID Issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
• Valid US Passport
• Valid Military ID
• Any Valid ID Issued by US Department of Veterans Affairs

If you are 17 or older, you are eligible to get a free state ID to use for voting. County issued veteran IDs and student IDs will no longer be accepted.

Attention Ohio Voters!
Ohio has a stricter voter ID law as of April 4, 2023

Voter Registration
To register to vote, you must provide your Ohio driver’s license or state identification card number or the last four digits of your social security number.
Registered voters in Ohio need to confirm their identity when they vote in person.

Voting In-Person
In Ohio, you need to show a current, valid photo ID to vote. Your ID must include your name (which must substantially conform to your name as it appears in the poll list), photo, and expiration date that has not passed. You may use ID from this list:

• Valid Ohio Driver’s License
• Ohio ID Card
• ID Issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
• Valid US Passport
• Valid Military ID
• Any Valid ID Issued by US Department of Veterans Affairs
• List of all acceptable forms of ID: here

If you are 17 or older, you are eligible to get a free state ID to use for voting. County issued veteran IDs and student IDs will no longer be accepted.

Note: You can no longer substitute a valid photo ID with a utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document containing your name and address. If you do not have a valid photo ID at the polls, you may vote a provisional ballot. For that ballot to be counted, you must present a photo ID at the office of the Board of Elections no later than the fourth day after Election Day.

Individual exceptions to the Voter ID rules may be made for religious reasons.

• If the voter arrives at the polls without acceptable photo ID, the voter is entitled to vote on a provisional ballot
  • However, in order for that ballot to be counted, the voter must return to the board of elections with acceptable ID within four days following Election Day.  The voter should be given information so that they can follow up on their status and confirm whether their vote was counted.  If they are not given any information, they should ask for information to follow up.
  • Voters who must vote by provisional ballot for a reason other than lack of acceptable ID, may provide photo ID and include on the provisional ballot affirmation: the type of ID and the license, state identification card or interim id document numbers.

• When voting by mail, voter must include in both application for ballot and the ballot itself either: 
  • An Ohio driver’s license number or state ID number (begins with two letters followed by six numbers);or
  • Last four digits of Social Security number; or
  • A copy of an acceptable  photo identification.
  • A COPY of your ID means images of both the front and back.
  • A COPY of a passport means an image of the passport’s ID page that includes your name, photo, and other identifying information and the passport’s expiration date.
• All ID must be unexpired, current and valid.

How to get free state ID: Securing an Ohio ID
Get in touch with VoteRiders if you have questions or need free help securing ID.

• Voters who move to a different voting precinct or county and have not updated their voter registration may go to the local board of elections for the new residence, sign an affirmation on the provisional ballot envelope that will serve as a notice of change of residence, vote a provisional ballot, and sign an attestation that they moved and will not vote in another location.

• Voters who move within the same precinct should vote a regular ballot after completing a change of residence form and showing valid ID.

Voting Military

Service members and their dependents may register and request a ballot using the federal voter registration/ballot request form (“FPCA”). You will have the following identification options when completing the form:

• U.S. State or Territory or District Issued ID
• Last 4 Digits of your Social Security Number
• Option to Indicate that you do not have the Requested ID

Voting Overseas

U.S. citizens living overseas may register and request a ballot using the overseas voter registration/ballot request form. You will have the following identification options when completing the form:

• Option to Indicate that you do not have the Requested ID
• U.S. State or Territory or District Issued ID
• Last 4 Digits of your Social Security Number

• If the voter is serving in the uniformed services (U.S. Armed Services, merchant marines, the commissioned corps of the Public Health Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the United States, the National Guard and organized militia) and meets the requirements for voting at their Ohio voting residence, they may vote a uniformed services absentee ballot. The voter’s spouse and dependents may vote a uniformed services absentee ballot if they left their Ohio voting residence to be with or near the voter. The voting residence of a service member is the place in Ohio where the service member resided for at least 30 days immediately before beginning their service.  To request an absentee ballot as an eligible voter serving in the uniformed services (or the voter’s eligible spouse or dependents), the voter should visit:  https://www.fvap.gov/Ohio. 
• A U.S. citizen living outside the U.S. is eligible to vote in the Ohio precinct where the voter resided immediately before leaving the U.S. if the voter
  • (1) was, or could have been, registered to vote in Ohio while residing there, or
  • (2) is currently eligible under Ohio law to vote in Ohio.

• A U.S. citizen who was born outside the U.S. is deemed to have a voting residence in Ohio at the place in the Ohio precinct where the person’s parent or guardian continuously resided for at least 30 days immediately before leaving the United States.  Overseas voters may request information at the following:  https://www.ohiosos.gov/secretary-office/office-initiatives/VoterPassport/. 

Overseas voters can request an absentee ballot here: https://www.ohiosos.gov/elections/voters/absentee-voting/.

• A person who has two convictions for violating Ohio’s elections laws is permanently barred from voting in Ohio. 
• A person with a misdemeanor conviction may vote, and a person with a felony conviction may register and vote while on probation or parole, or after completing their jail or prison sentence.

• If a person is awaiting trial in jail for a misdemeanor or felony or is imprisoned for a misdemeanor, they can vote by an absentee ballot if they are otherwise eligible to vote (i.e., they are registered).

• If a person is currently incarcerated on a felony conviction, their voter registration is canceled, and in order to vote, they must re-register to vote when eligible to do so. They may register to vote again once they complete their jail or prison sentence, or once they go on probation, parole, or community control.