Voter Registration - ID Requirement - Acceptable Forms of ID - Early Voting - Absentee Voting - Provisional Voting - Sample Ballots - Type of Primary

State Contact Information
Division of Elections
312 Eighth Avenue North
9th Floor, William Snodgrass Tower
Nashville, Tennessee 37243-0309

Phone: (615) 741-7956
Fax: N/A

Web: http://www.state.tn.us/sos/election/index.htm
Email: tennessee.elections@state.tn.us

Voter Registration
Qualifications to Register to Vote:

1. The person must be a citizen of the United States, (18) years of age or older before the date of the next election
2. The person must be a resident of Tennessee. View Guidelines for Determining Residency.
   • Special Considerations for Homeless Persons Residency and Non-resident Property Owners
     

The person must not have been convicted of a felony, or if he or she has, their full rights of citizenship must have been restored (or they must have received a pardon). View Restoration of Voting Rights.

In order to participate in an election, a qualified voter must be properly registered no later than thirty (30) days before the election. The election commission office will process any by-mail voter registration form that has been postmarked at least thirty (30) days before the election. T.C.A 2-2-109.

How to Register to Vote:
Online: Not available

Download: Qualified persons may download and complete the Voter Registration Application and mail to their county election commission (To locate your local election commission office please visit: http://tnsos.org/elections/election_commissions.php)

In person: Qualified voters may also register in person at any of the following public agencies:

• County Clerk's Offices
• County Election Commission Office
• Department of Health (WIC program),
• Department of Human Services,
• Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation,
• Department of Safety (motor vehicles division)
• Department of Veteran's Affairs
• Public Libraries
• Register of Deeds Offices

First-time voters: Anyone who registers by mail must vote in person the first time he or she votes after registering.

Address Change within County
To avoid complications on Election Day, registered voters should keep their local election commission informed of any change in address. The voter must notify their county election commission in writing, that there has been a change in address, sign the written document, as late as five (5) days before the election. If on the day of voting the address on the voter's permanent voter registration record differs from the voter's current address, then the voter must complete an affidavit before being allowed to vote. The voter must vote at his or her new polling place or at a central location designated by the county election commission office.

Address Changes to a Different County within Tennessee
If a voter has moved to a different county within Tennessee, he or she must register in that county by completing a voter registration application. The voter may either go in person to the local county election commission or mail the application to the local county election commission. All registration deadlines apply to new applications; therefore, the voter must register no later than thirty (30) days before the election. If the voter registers by mail, he/she must vote in person at the first election. This rule applies even if the voter has voted in the previous county where he/she was registered.

If a registered voter moves to a different county within 90 days of an election, the voter may leave his/her registration in the county where previously registered. The voter will have to vote in that county and at the correct polling place. Alternatively, the voter may choose to register in the new residential county prior to the registration deadline.

If a registered voter has been moved to a different county 91 days or more, the voter must register in the new county by the registration deadline. If this process is not completed, the voter will not be permitted to vote in any elections until after the voter has properly registered.

First-time voters who registered by mail and did not provide a copy of a form of identification with their application must also provide evidence of identification at the polling place.

Acceptable Forms of ID
The following are acceptable forms of ID for all voters:

• Voter registration certificate
• Tennessee driver's license
• Social Security card
• Credit card bearing voter's signature
• Other document bearing voter's signature

First-time voters only: If the voter does not have any of the above forms of ID, he or she can still vote if they present two of the following forms of ID - one from each group.

Group A

• current and valid photo ID government or private not containing the voter's signature
• current utility bill
• bank statement
• government check
• pay check
• government documents with your name and address.
  

Group B

• Any document with voters' name and signature (Examples: Social security card, credit card with a signature, any other document which has the voter's name and signature.)
• Or sign an affidavit of ID form provided by the polling place officials (does not require a notary).

Early Voting (open)
What is Early Voting: Early voting is one of two ways in which a registered voter of Tennessee may vote before the actual Election Day. The second way for a registered voter to vote early is called by mail voting.

Who Can Vote Early: Both early voting and by mail voting are for the voter's convenience. These two voting choices differ in that to vote by mail, the individual must have a statutory reason (see Absentee Voting/Vote By Mail for more information). On the other hand, to vote during the early voting period, the person may vote purely for the sake of convenience.

Where to Vote Early: To vote early, a registered voter must appear in person at either the county election commission office or at a satellite voting location opened by the county election commission. For details regarding times and early voting locations, a person must contact the local county election commission office. To locate your local county election commission office please visit: http://tnsos.org/elections/election_commissions.php

When to Vote Early: For each election, early voting begins 20 days before the election and ends 5 days before the election. Although closed from voting on holidays, a person may vote early on any Saturday that falls during this time frame. (The only exception to this time period, involves a municipal election in which there is not any opposition for any of the offices involved on the ballot.)

Absentee Voting/Vote by Mail (restricted)
To vote by mail, a registered voter must fall under one of the following categories:

1. The voter will be outside the county of registration during the early voting period and all day on election day;
2. The voter or the voter's spouse is enrolled as a full-time student in an accredited college or university outside the county of registration;
3. The voter's licensed physician has filed a statement with the county election commission stating that, in the physician's judgment, the voter is medically unable to vote in person. The statement must be filed not less than five (5) days before the election and signed under the penalty of perjury;
4. The voter resides in a licensed facility providing relatively permanent domiciliary care, other than a penal institution, outside the voter's county of residence;
5. The voter will be unable to vote in person due to service as a juror for a federal or state court;
6. The voter is sixty-five (65) years of age or older;
7. The voter has a physical disability and an inaccessible polling place;
8. The voter is hospitalized, ill, or physically disabled and because of such condition, cannot vote in person;
9. The voter is a caretaker of a person who is hospitalized, ill, or disabled;
10. The voter is a candidate for office in the election;
11. The voter serves as an election day official or as a member or employee of the election commission;
12. The voter's observance of a religious holiday prevents him or her from voting in person during the early voting period and on election day;
13. The voter possesses a valid commercial driver license and certifies that he or she will be working outside the state or county of registration during the early voting period and all day on election day;
14. The voter is a member of the military or is an overseas citizen. For more information please visit: http://state.tn.us/sos/election/absentee_military.htm

How to Request an absentee/ by mail ballot:
A registered voter may request a by-mail ballot by simply writing to the voter's local county election commission office and making such a request over the voter's signature. The request may be mailed or faxed to the county election commission office. Upon receipt of the request, the local election commission will mail an application for ballot to the voter. However, if the voter wants to expedite the application process, the voter may place the following information in the request for ballot:

1. The name of the registered voter;
2. The address of the voter's residence;
3. The voter's social security number;
4. The address to mail the ballot outside the county (this applies only when the reason for voting by mail involves that the voter will be outside of the county during early voting and on election day);
5. The election the voter wishes to participate in. If the election involves a primary, the political party in which the voter wishes to participate;
6. The reason the voter wishes to vote absentee; and
7. The voter's signature.

A request that contains this information will be treated and processed as an application for ballot, and a ballot will be mailed to the voter.

If the voter possesses a valid commercial driver license and does not have a specific out-of-county or out-of-state location to which mail may be sent or received during the early voting or Election Day hours, the voter may:

1. Complete an application to vote absentee by mail at the voter's county election commission office; or
2. Send a written request that contains the information discussed in the question above; and
3. Provide the commercial driver license number on the voter's current commercial driver license;
4. Provide the voter's current residential address and any mailing address to which the ballot shall be mailed.

When to Request an Absentee/By Mail Ballot:
A registered voter may request an application for a by-mail ballot starting ninety (90) days before the election and no later than seven (7) days before the election. To be processed for the next election, the application must be received by the election commission no later than seven (7) days before the election.

When to Return Completed Ballot:
The county election commission must receive the ballot by mail no later than the close of polls on Election Day. Once the election commission issues an absentee by-mail ballot to a voter, the voter can only vote by mail.

If a voter does not receive or "spoils" his/her ballot:
If a voter notifies the election commission that he or she has "spoiled" a ballot or has not received the ballot, the election commission shall note on the records that subsequent supplies have been sent and supply the voter with subsequent voting supplies.

Provisional Voting (in precinct)
A voter, who claims to be registered but is not listed in the roster of registered voters, can receive a provisional ballot for later verification. However, provisional ballots must be cast in the correct precinct. Tennessee does not provide a limited provisional ballot.

Sample Ballots

Sample ballot or information on obtaining a sample ballot may be accessed by contacting the local county election commission.

Type of Primary (open)
Tennessee is an open primary state. Qualified persons may vote in the primary of the party of their choice.