Can I vote early? Where?
EVIC is a research organization providing information and analysis on non-precinct place voting, primarily in the U.S. Unfortunately, we do not have the resources to provide voting location information to individual members of the public. However, there are some great online resources that can help you, for example:
What are the different kinds of early voting?
There are two main types of early voting in the United States: early in-person (EIP) and vote-by-mail (VBM). Each state offers its own style of early voting with its own rules and, often, its own name. However, these are the main characteristics of each type:
Early In-Person Voting (EIP)
Many states allow voters to cast their ballots during a period of time before Election Day in a manner similar to the way voters cast ballots on Election Day. Some of these states allow early voting only at the county elections office, while others establish extra satellite locations (for example, in libraries, City Hall, churches, sometimes even convenience stores or malls).
Voters often cast ballots using the same voting machines used on Election Day; though some areas use only paper ballots, similar to absentee voting. In most states, voters must be registered beforehand in order to vote early, just like on Election Day.
EIP periods vary a lot in how long they last: some begin early voting more than a month before Election Day, while others allow only a week or a few days of early voting.
EIP is often called: early voting, in-person absentee, one-stop voting, advance voting.
Voting by mail (VBM)
All states allow some form of absentee voting––where voters receive their ballots in the mail, and return them either in-person or through the postal system.
Although many states still require a voter to have a reason to vote this way (being out of town, being in hospital, etc.), "no-excuse" or "no-fault" absentee systems are growing in popularity. A few states with no-excuse absentee voting now also offer a "permanent" option, whereby voters may choose to become vote-by-mail voters for all subsequent elections.
Oregon and Washington have taken this one step further –– all voters receive their ballots by mail.
VBM is often called: vote-by-mail, no-excuse absentee, mail voting, postal voting.
What is the history of early voting in the U.S.?
The first absentee ballots were used in 1864 during the Civil War to provide soldiers with the opportunity to vote. Today, if you're in the military, a student, or out of the country, you are always able to request an absentee ballot and vote absentee, no matter what state you live in.
What's changed in the last twenty years is the growth of no-excuse absentee voting and the introduction of alternative in-person voting. In the late seventies, California was the first state to experiment with no-excuse absentee voting, though it wasn't until the late eighties that this method of voting really gained popularity.
Currently, California, Colorado, Montana and Washington allow citizens to become permanent absentee voters. A registered voter, if on the permanent absentee voting list, will automatically receive an absentee ballot for every election. In Oregon, all elections are conducted entirely by mail.
The most recent change to non-precinct place voting is the growth of early in-person voting. EIP was first widely used in Texas elections in the mid-1980s. Oklahoma, Tennessee, New Mexico, and Nevada followed in the early 1990s.
How many people voted early in the last election?
This may seem like a simple question, but it's actually quite difficult to answer.
To the best of our knowledge, around a third of ballots cast in the 2008 presidential election were cast by a method other than the traditional Election Day polling station. This number comes from extensive efforts to aggregate state-, county-, and township-level data on the 2008 presidential election.
11 states have now reached above the 50% early voting threshold: Tennessee, Nevada, Colorado, Washington, and Oregon have received more than half their ballots via these alternative methods since 2006; Arizona, Florida, Georgia, New Mexico, North Carolina, and Texas joined them in 2008.
Why do states adopt early voting? Are there risks?
Proponents of early voting cite a few major reasons for states to adopt one or more of these options. Most commonly, many people believe that early voting increases turnout by making voting more convenient––lowering the costs of voting. Early in-person voting and vote-by-mail can fit into voters' schedules more easily than Election Day and can alleviate the long lines and overtaxed poll-workers that have become problematic on Election Day.
Most academic studies of early voting have focused on the turnout question, but they have been largely inconclusive. The best we can say is that early voting appears to increase turnout in low-interest elections (midterm or local elections), but does not produce a significant increase in high-interest (general, presidential) elections. Few studies have examined the costs of early voting, though Oregon and Washington claim that mandatory vote-by-mail yields significant cost savings. Similarly, anecdotal evidence from election officials suggests that the longer periods involved in early in-person voting can help with training for poll-workers, reduce the long lines at polling places, and provide a period of time in which to correct problems such as registration mistakes.
Some critics of early voting point to the increased potential for voting fraud––especially in vote-by-mail and absentee voting. To our knowledge, there are few cases of fraud involving this type of voting (one occurred in the 1998 mayoral race in Miami, FL). While fraud should be a concern in any electoral system, there is no evidence that any form of convenience voting has led to higher levels of fraud.
Finally, some scholars worry that non-precinct place voting may be challenging the traditional civic Election Day experience. Few studies have taken up this claim, but many argue that Election Day has not been a communitarian experience for a long time, particularly given the low turnout rates of the last fifty years.