Vote Absentee 

Click here to download the Massachusetts Absentee Ballot Application, or here to download the application in Spanish. Below are some frequently asked questions.

Yes. You may vote by absentee ballot if you:

• will be absent from your city or town on election day, and/or
• have a physical disability that prevents your voting at the polling place, and/or
• cannot vote at the polls due to religious beliefs.

Apply in writing to the Election Department in your city or town and include your:

• name
• address as registered
• address where you wish the absentee ballot sent
• in a primary, the party ballot you want, and
• your signature

Download an Application Form

Yes. A family member may apply for you.

If you wish to vote by absentee ballot for more than one election in a year you may make one application and request that ballots for all elections during that calendar year be sent to you.
If you vote by mail, make certain the application arrives at your election clerk early. Remember, the ballot must be mailed to you.

Yes. You can apply and vote at the same time for 2-3 weeks before an election. Call your election clerk to make certain that the absentee ballots are available.

You may vote at the Election Department office at City Hall or request that the ballot is mailed to you. The deadline for applying for an absentee ballot is noon of the day before the election.

Yes.

No.

You may ask any person to help you. The helper must print his or her name and your name on the brown envelope, write the reason you needed help and then sign his or her name as the assisting person.

Yes. Federal law requires polling places to be accessible to all voters.

Yes. You must apply to the your local election office to do so. File a letter from your doctor with the Boston Election Department. The doctor must state that you are permanently unable to cast your ballot at the polling place due to a physical disability.
The Election Department will automatically mail you an application for an absentee ballot for all elections in a calendar year. You must sign the application and send it back. Call the Election Department for more information about how to register to vote at home or to request that a mail-in registration form be sent to you.

Yes, as long as that individual is not under a court ordered guardianship which specifically prohibits voting. Any patient in a nursing home must be a registered voter in order to vote by absentee ballot and must fill out an absentee ballot application.
If the clerk designates a health care facility in writing 28 days before the election, the ballot must be hand-delivered to such facility by a Registrar. If the patient states that he/she has entered a hospital after noon of the fifth day before the election, the ballot may be hand-delivered to the voter; otherwise, the ballot should be mailed to the voter at the facility. Consult the administration of the nursing home for further instructions.