Arkansas Absentee Voter Guide

Military and overseas voters should check out the Overseas Vote Foundation.  Long Distance Voter's forms and deadlines should only be used by voters with US mailing addresses.

Mail-in Deadlines

General Election: Tuesday, November 4, 2008 

Voter Registration

To register to vote in Arkansas, you

• must be a U.S. citizen and an Arkansas resident 30 days prior to an election.
• must be age 18 before the next election within the county.
• must not presently be judged mentally incompetent by a court 
• must not have been convicted of a felony without your sentence having been discharged or pardoned.
• must not claim the right to vote in another county or state.

How to register to vote:

• Recommended: Use our Voter Registration Widget.  Enter your information, print and sign the completed form, and mail it to the address printed on the form.  
• You can also download and fill out Arkansas's voter registration form.  Mail your completed form to your County Clerk. 

ID requirements for first-time voters:

If you are registering for the first time in Arkansas, and you register by mail, you must submit proof of identification with your application.  If you forget, you'll need to provide ID the first time you vote in person or by absentee ballot.  Acceptable forms of ID include a COPY of a current and valid photo identification that shows your name and address OR a COPY of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck or other government document that shows your name and address.

Voter registration verification:

You should receive written confirmation that your voter registration was processed in 2-3 weeks.  Don't panic if you never receive your voter registration card: you don't actually need it to vote.  If you not sure if your registration was processed - or if you simply can't remember if you're register to vote - you can verify your voter registration here.

Absentee Voting

Absentee voting rules:

You can vote by absentee ballot if:

• you will be unavoidably absent from your polling site on election day, OR
• you will be unable to attend your polling site on election day due to illness or physical disability, OR
• you are a member of the U.S. armed forces, merchant marines or the spouse or a dependant family member, OR
• a U.S. citizen domiciled in Arkansas but temporarily living outside the territorial limits of the United States.

How to apply for an absentee ballot:

Arkansas's absentee ballot application is not available online. Call your County Clerk and ask them to send you the absentee ballot application.  Once you receive the application, you fill it out and mail it back to your county clerk's office.

Since you'll need to wait for your County Clerk to process your request and mail your application, you should call well before the absentee ballot application deadline.  It should take about a week for your clerk to process your request and mail your application.  Once you receive the application, fill it out and make sure you return it by the deadline. Your clerk will then mail you an absentee ballot.  

ID requirements for absentee voters:

You do not need to provide ID if you've already at least once.  If you are voting for the first time in Arkansas, and you registered by mail, you'll need to submit a copy of your ID with your absentee ballot application (you don't need to do this if you included ID with your voter registration form).  Acceptable forms of ID includea COPY of a current and valid photo identification that shows your name and address OR a COPY of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck or other government document that shows your name and address.

Completing and returning your voted absentee ballot:

Fill out your ballot, sign where indicated, put a stamp on it, and then mail your absentee ballot back to your County Clerk.  Be sure to meet the deadline or your ballot won't be counted!

State Contact Information