Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.

Absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines, 2025

From Ballotpedia
Jump to: navigation, search

Election Dates and Deadlines banner 2025.png

2026 »
« 2024

Election Dates Logo.png

2025 election and voting dates
Voter registration deadlines
Early voting dates
Absentee/mail-in ballot request deadlines
Absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines
State poll opening and closing times

Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker
State of Election Administration Legislation Reports

Select a state from the menu below to learn more about its voting policies.


All states allow for some form of absentee/mail-in voting. 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 statewide primaries and general elections in 2025. For additional information about absentee/mail-in voting, click here. Eight states and the District of Columbia use what is commonly referred to as all-mail voting. In these states, voting is conducted primarily, although not necessarily exclusively, by mail, and no request is required.

Primary election deadlines

The table below displays absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines for statewide primary elections in 2025. Statewide primary elections are administered by each state according to state law. They allow political parties that meet certain state qualifications to determine which candidates will represent them in the general election.

Absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines
StateElection dateIn-person return deadlineMail return deadlineMail return deadline typeSource
GeorgiaJune 17, 2025June 17, 2025June 17, 2025ReceivedSource
GeorgiaJuly 15, 2025July 15, 2025July 15, 2025ReceivedSource
LouisianaMarch 29, 2025March 28, 2025March 28, 2025ReceivedSource
New JerseyJune 10, 2025June 10, 2025June 10, 2025PostmarkedSource
OhioMay 6, 2025May 6, 2025May 5, 2025PostmarkedSource
PennsylvaniaMay 20, 2025May 20, 2025May 20, 2025ReceivedSource
VirginiaJune 17, 2025June 17, 2025June 17, 2025PostmarkedSource
WisconsinFeb. 18, 2025Feb. 18, 2025Feb. 18, 2025ReceivedSource

General election deadlines

The table below displays absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines for statewide general elections in 2025.

Absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines
StateElection dateIn-person return deadlineMail return deadlineMail return deadline typeSource
WisconsinApril 1, 2025April 1, 2025April 1, 2025ReceivedSource


Absentee/mail-in ballot return deadlines
StateElection dateIn-person return deadlineMail return deadlineMail return deadline typeSource
CaliforniaNov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025PostmarkedSource
ColoradoNov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025ReceivedSource
GeorgiaNov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025ReceivedSource
MaineNov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025ReceivedSource
New JerseyNov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025PostmarkedSource
New YorkNov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025PostmarkedSource
PennsylvaniaNov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025ReceivedSource
TexasNov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025PostmarkedSource
VirginiaNov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025PostmarkedSource
WashingtonNov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025Nov. 4, 2025PostmarkedSource


Absentee/mail-in voting procedures by state

See also: Absentee/mail-in voting

The table below summarizes existing statutory absentee/mail-in voting procedures in the states.

Absentee/mail-in voting procedures by state
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.
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.

Local elected officials


U.S. Vote Foundation Logo.jpeg

Do you need information about elections in your area? Are you looking for your local election official? Click here to visit the U.S. Vote Foundation and use their election official lookup tool.


Explore election legislation with Ballotpedia

  • Try Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker
    Try Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker
    Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker provides daily updates on legislative activity related to election policy in all 50 states.

    Our election policy experts translate complex bill text into easy-to-understand summaries. And because it's from Ballotpedia, our legislation tracker is guaranteed to be neutral, unbiased, and nonpartisan.
  • Read Ballotpedia's State of Election Administration Legislation Reports
    Read Ballotpedia's State of Election Administration Legislation Reports
    Ballotpedia publishes regular analysis of election administration legislation, including three full reports per year, providing ongoing coverage of legislative activity affecting election policy in each state.

    These reports deliver insights into partisan priorities, dive deep into notable trends, and highlight activity in key states.
  • Subscribe to The Ballot Bulletin

    Subscribe to The Ballot Bulletin
    The Ballot Bulletin is a weekly email that delivers the latest updates on election policy.

    The newsletter tracks developments in election policy around the country, including legislative activity, big-picture trends, and recent news. Each email contains in-depth data from our Election Administration Legislation Tracker.


Ballotpedia's election coverage

Click the tiles below to navigate to 2025 election coverage:


See also

Footnotes

  1. National Conference of State Legislatures, "Absentee and Early Voting," July 30, 2023
  2. 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."