Voting

Voting

Register to Vote

Elections

Virginia has elections every year. The Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General are elected every four years (next in 2025). Virginia’s legislative body, the General Assembly, is divided into two chambers: the House of Delegates and the Senate. Delegates are elected for two-year terms and senators for four-year terms.

Voter Registration

All citizens must be registered before voting. You may register at

Your Office of Elections

 

Clarke County

  • 101 Chalmers Court, 2nd Floor, Berryville, VA  22611
  • (540) 955-5168

Frederick County

  • 343 Sunnyside Plaza, Winchester, VA  22603
  • (540) 655-5660

Harrisonburg

  • 409 S Main Street, 1st Floor, Harrisonburg, VA  22801

Rockingham County

  • 20 East Gay Street, Harrisonburg, VA  22802
  • 540-564-3000

Shenandoah County

  • 600 N. Main St., Suite 103, Woodstock, VA 22664
  • (540) 459-6195

Warren County

  • 465 W. 15th St., Suite 800, Front Royal, VA 22630
  • (540) 635-4327

Winchester

  • 107-A East Lane, Winchester, VA  22601
  • (540) 545-7910

Division of Motor Vehicles

Online at the Virginia Department of Elections' Citizen's Portal www.vote.elections.virginia.gov

By mail

Where to Pick Up a Voter Registration Application

Local Voter Registration Offices (get a free voter ID card, register to vote in person, report a name or address change, find your polling place, more)

Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)

Voter Registration Drives

State or Local Government Offices (for example, when applying or re-certifying for Aid to Dependent Children, Food Stamps, WIC, Medicaid, Rehabilitation Services, Developmental Disabilities Services)

Armed Forces Recruitment Offices

Public Libraries

State Board of Elections Office

Requirements to Register

The Virginia Department of Elections https://www.elections.virginia.gov/registration/how-to-register/

explains who is eligible to vote in Virginia and how to register. To be eligible to register to vote in Virginia, a person must:

  • be a resident of Virginia (a person who has come to Virginia for temporary purposes and intends to return to another state is not considered a resident for voting purposes),
  • be a U.S. citizen,
  • be at least 18 years old (any person who is 17 years old and will be 18 at the next general election shall be permitted to register in advance and also vote in any intervening primary or special election),
  • not be registered and plan to vote in another state,
  • not currently declared mentally incompetent by a court of law, and
  • if convicted of a felony, your right to vote must have been restored

Military or overseas voters https://www.overseasvotefoundation.org/vote/eod.htm

Voter Notice

After you register, the local Registrar or the Department of Elections will send you a voter notice that identifies your polling place and your Congressional and General Assembly districts.

Voter ID Law in Virginia

All voters casting a ballot in-person will be asked to show one form of identification. Any voter who does not present acceptable identification may instead sign a statement, subject to felony penalties, that they are the named registered voter who they claim to be. Any voter who does not present acceptable identification or sign this statement must vote a provisional ballot. Click here to see complete list of acceptable voter ID’s:   https://www.elections.virginia.gov/registration/voterid/

How to Vote

1. Vote Early in Person

You can vote early at your local registrar’s office beginning 45 days before Election Day and ending the Saturday before Election Day. Before visiting your local registrar’s office, you may wish to check your registration status or call your registrar’s office.

2. Vote by Mail

Also known as absentee voting, you must apply for a mail ballot at elections.virginia.gov or at your Office of Elections before the application deadline. Mail your ballot in the postage-paid envelope, postmarked on or before Election Day and received by your general registrar's office by noon on the third day following the election; or take your ballot to the Office of Elections by 7:00 p.m. on Election Day; or return your absentee ballot to a drop-off location (for more information, review the instructions provided in your absentee ballot mailing); or take your ballot to your polling place on Election Day where a witness must sign your absentee ballot.

3. Vote in Person on Election Day

6 am–7 pm at your polling location (find your polling location using Virginia Department of Election's Citizen Portal). Curbside voting is available during early voting and on Election Day for people with disabilities or health risks.