VOPP: Table 1: States with No-Excuse Absentee Voting
This table is part of NCSL’s Voting Outside the Polling Place report.
“Absentee” first came about during the Civil War as a way for soldiers to cast a ballot in their home states. The idea of allowing military voters to cast a ballot “in absentia” is still one of the driving factors for states allowing absentee ballots. All states, by federal law, are required to send absentee ballots to military and overseas voters for federal elections.
For domestic voters wishing to vote absentee or by mail, 16 states require voters to provide an “excuse” for why they will not be able to vote on Election Day. Some of these states do provide early in-person voting.
The other 34 states and Washington, D.C., do not require an excuse from those who wish to vote absentee or by mail. Five states conduct elections entirely by mail (Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Utah and Washington), which means voters do not need to request a ballot, and instead automatically receive one. The other 29 states and D.C. offer “no-excuse” absentee voting, which means any voter can request a mail ballot without providing an excuse.
| State | Details |
|---|---|
| Alaska
Alaska Stat. § 15.20.010 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Arizona
Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 16-541 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| California
Cali. Elec Code § 3003 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Colorado
Colo. Rev. Stat. §1-5-401 |
All-mail elections |
| District of Columbia
D.C. Mun. Regs. Tit. 3, § 720 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Florida
Flor. Stat. § 101.62 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Georgia
Georgia Code § 21-2-380 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Hawaii
Hawaii Stat. §11-101 |
All-mail elections |
| Idaho
Idaho Code §34-1001 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Illinois
10 ILCS 5/19-1 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Iowa
Iowa Code § 53.1 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Kansas
Kan. Stat. Ann.§ 25-1119(a) |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Maine
21-A ME Rev Stat § 751 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Maryland
Md. Elec Law §9-304 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Michigan
M.C.L.A. 168.759 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Minnesota
Minn. Stat. § 203B.02 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Montana
Mont. Code § 13-13-201 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Nebraska
Neb. Rev. Stat. Ann. §32-938 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Nevada
NRS §293.313 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| New Jersey
N.J. Rev. Stat. § 19:63-3 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| New Mexico
N.M. Stat. § 1-6-3 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| North Carolina
N.C. Gen Stat § 163-226 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| North Dakota
N.D. Cent. Code § 16.1-07-01 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Ohio
Ohio Rev Code § 3509.02 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Oklahoma
26 OK Stat § 26-14-105 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Oregon
Ore. Rev. Stat. §254.465 |
All-mail elections |
| Pennsylvania
25 P.S. § 3150.11 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Rhode Island
R.I. Gen Laws § 17-20-2 |
No-excuse absentee voting
(Rhode Island lists several excuses to vote absentee, but also specifies “No specific reason necessary.” Since any Rhode Islander can request an absentee ballot, NCSL has categorized it as no excuse required.) |
| South Dakota
S.D. Cod. Laws § 12-19-1 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Utah
Utah Code Ann. §20A-3a-302 |
All-mail elections |
| Vermont
17 VSA § 2531 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Virginia
VA Code Ann. § 24.2-700 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Washington
Rev. Code of Wash. 29A.40.010 |
All-mail elections |
| Wisconsin
Wis. Stat. § 6.86 (1)(ac) |
No-excuse absentee voting |
| Wyoming
WY Stat § 22-9-102 |
No-excuse absentee voting |
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