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Absentee Application
Absentee voting is an easy and convenient way to exercise your right to vote. Any registered voter in the state of Oklahoma may vote by absentee ballot. You do not have to give a reason for wanting to vote absentee.
Applications for absentee ballots must be made in writing. Absentee ballot application forms are available from all county election boards and from the State Election Board. The forms may also be downloaded from the State Election Board's website. To download one of these forms, click here. You are not required to use the form, however. You may write a letter to your county election board to apply for absentee ballots. The letter must contain the following information: your date of birth the address at which you are registered to vote the election or elections for which you are requesting ballots the address for which the ballots should be mailed your signature You may apply for absentee ballots for a specific election or for all of the elections in which you are eligible to vote during the calendar year. You may mail your application to the County Election Board, or you may fax it. You may also personally deliver your own application to the election board office. You may not, however, deliver someone else's application - it's the law! The deadline to apply to have an absentee ballot mailed to you is always 5pm on Wednesday before the election. If you apply for all elections, you must renew your application each year to continue receiving absentee ballots.
You must return your absentee ballot to the county election board by mail. An absentee ballot must be in the hands of the county election board by 7pm on election day to be counted.
The law still includes some "excuses" for voters to use when they apply for absentee ballots. The excuses activate special conditions for some voters that make it easier to vote absentee. Physically incapacitated voters and voters who care for physically incapacitated persons who cannot be left alone may vote by absentee ballot. These voters may apply for absentee ballots only by mail, fax, or telegraph. Their absentee ballot affidavits do not have to be notarized, but they do have to be witnessed by two people. Voters in nursing homes in the same county where they are registered to vote may vote by absentee ballot. These voters may apply for absentee ballots only by mail, fax, or telegraph. Their absentee ballots are delivered to the nursing home by an Absentee Voting Board a few days before the election. Oklahomans who are in the military or who are living overseas and their spouses and dependents may vote by absentee ballot even if they are not registered to vote. (They must be eligible to be registered to vote, however.) Military and overseas may apply for absentee ballots by mail or fax. Military voters should contact the Voting Service Officers in their units for application forms and information. Overseas voters may obtain the same materials at any United States military base, embassy or consulate.
Voters who become incapacitated after 5pm on the Tuesday preceding an election may apply for an absentee ballot through special emergency procedures. These voters must send a written request to their local county election board. The request must also include a doctor's statement that the voter is incapacitated and unable to vote in person. The county election board has a form for this purpose. The voter chooses someone to deliver the request for ballots and the doctor's statement to the county election board. This person is the voter's agent. The agent receives the voter's ballot and delivers it to the voter. After the voter marks the ballot, the agent returns it to the county election board. The agent must return the voted ballot to the county election board by 7pm on election day.
For State and Federal elections: Voters may vote an absentee ballot in person at the county election board office on Friday and Monday from 8am to 6pm, and Saturday from 8am to 1pm. For all local elections: In-person voting will be held at the county election board office on Friday and Monday from 8am to 6pm.
For additional information about voting in Oklahoma, contact your local County Election Board, or write or call the State Election Board: P.O. Box 53156 Oklahoma City, OK 73152 Phone: (405) 521-2391 WWW: http://www.elections.state.ok.us Persons using a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the State Election Board's TDD at: (405) 521-3028. This number is reserved for TDD calls only. |
