Absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines, 2023
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Absentee/mail-in voting is voting that does not happen in person on Election Day but instead occurs another way (generally by mail). All states allow for some form of absentee/mail-in balloting. Some states require voters to provide a valid excuse to vote absentee/by mail, while others allow any eligible voter to cast an absentee/mail-in ballot.[1][2]
This article lists absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines for the primary and general election cycles in states holding statewide elections in 2023. For additional information about absentee/mail-in voting, see this article.
Absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines for 2023 primary elections
The table below summarizes the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines and the type of deadlines for primary elections in 2023.
| Absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines for primary elections, 2023 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Election date | In-person return deadline | Mail return deadline | Mail return deadline type |
| Kentucky | 5/16/2023 | 5/16/2023 | 5/16/2023 | Received |
| Louisiana | 10/14/2023 | 10/13/2023 | 10/13/2023 | Received |
| Mississippi | 8/8/2023 | 8/8/2023 | 8/8/2023 | Postmarked |
| Mississippi | 8/29/2023[3] | 8/29/2023 | 8/29/2023 | Postmarked |
| New Jersey | 6/6/2023 | 6/6/2023 | 6/6/2023 | Postmarked |
| Pennsylvania | 5/16/2023 | 5/16/2023 | 5/16/2023 | Received |
| Virginia | 6/20/2023 | 6/20/2023 | 6/20/2023 | Postmarked |
| Washington | 8/1/2023 | 8/1/2023 | 8/1/2023 | Postmarked |
| Wisconsin | 2/21/2023 | 2/21/2023 | 2/21/2023 | Received |
Absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines for 2023 general elections
The table below summarizes the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines and the type of deadlines for general elections in 2023.
| Absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines for general elections, 2023 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Election date | In-person return deadline | Mail return deadline | Mail return deadline type |
| Kentucky | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | Received |
| Louisiana | 11/18/2023 | 11/17/2023 | 11/17/2023 | Received |
| Mississippi | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | Postmarked |
| Mississippi | 11/28/2023[4] | 11/28/2023 | 11/28/2023 | Postmarked |
| New Jersey | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | Postmarked |
| Pennsylvania | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | Received |
| Virginia | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | Postmarked |
| Washington | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | 11/7/2023 | Postmarked |
| Wisconsin | 4/4/2023 | 4/4/2023 | 4/4/2023 | Received |
Absentee/mail-in voting procedures by state
The map and table below summarizes existing statutory absentee/mail-in voting procedures in the states.
| State | Absentee/mail-in voting type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| Alaska | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Arizona | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Arkansas | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| California | Automatic mail-in voting | Every voter receives a mail-in ballot by default. |
| Colorado | Automatic mail-in voting | Every voter receives a mail-in ballot by default. |
| Connecticut | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required.[5] |
| Delaware | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| Florida | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Georgia | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Hawaii | Automatic mail-in voting | Every voter receives a mail-in ballot by default. |
| Idaho | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Illinois | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Indiana | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| Iowa | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Kansas | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Kentucky | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| Louisiana | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| Maine | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Maryland | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Massachusetts | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Michigan | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Minnesota | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Mississippi | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| Missouri | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| Montana | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Nebraska | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Nevada | Automatic mail-in voting | Every voter receives a mail-in ballot by default. |
| New Hampshire | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| New Jersey | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| New Mexico | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| New York | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| North Carolina | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| North Dakota | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Ohio | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Oklahoma | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Oregon | Automatic mail-in voting | Every voter receives a mail-in ballot by default. |
| Pennsylvania | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Rhode Island | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| South Carolina | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| South Dakota | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Tennessee | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| Texas | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| Utah | Automatic mail-in voting | Every voter receives a mail-in ballot by default. |
| Vermont | Automatic mail-in voting (general elections only) | Every voter receives a mail-in ballot by default. |
| Virginia | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Washington | Automatic mail-in voting | Every voter receives a mail-in ballot by default. |
| West Virginia | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | Excuse required. |
| Wisconsin | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
| Wyoming | Request-required absentee/mail-in voting | No excuse required. |
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Footnotes
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "Absentee and Early Voting," July 30, 2019
- ↑ We use the term "absentee/mail-in voting" to describe systems in which requests or applications are required. We use the term "all-mail voting" to denote systems where the ballots themselves are sent automatically to all voters. We use the hyphenate term for absentee voting because some states use “mail voting” (or a similar alternative) to describe what has traditionally been called "absentee voting."
- ↑ Runoff election date
- ↑ Runoff election date
- ↑ In November 2024, voters approved a constitutional amendment authorizing the Connecticut State Legislature to provide by law for no-excuse absentee voting. As of October 2025, the legislature has not passed legislation to implement the change.
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