Mail-in voting information for the City of Boston

Yes, every registered voter is eligible to vote by mail this year.

You need to be a registered voter to vote by mail. The deadline to register to vote in the Preliminary Municipal Election is Wednesday, August 25, 2021. You can register online, by mail, or in person at Boston City Hall.

Yes. As long as your registration form is received or postmarked 20 days before the election, your application can be submitted with your registration form. For the September Preliminary Municipal Election, that date is Wednesday, August 25, 2021.

Before you fill out your mail-in ballot application, use the state's website to confirm that you're registered at your current address.

If the voter registration deadline hasn't passed yet, you should register to vote at your current address. If there isn't time to update your address, you should apply using your old address where you are registered to vote if:

• you have moved within the same city or town where you are registered, OR
• you have moved to a new city or town in Massachusetts within six months of the election.

When you apply by mailing a paper application, emailing your application to absentee@boston.gov (be sure to sign), or bringing your application to City Hall Room 241, you can request that your ballot be sent to your new address.

If you are a registered Boston voter, submit a 2021 vote-by-mail application by mail, email, fax, to the Boston Election Department:

Election Department
1 City Hall Square, Room 241
Boston, MA 02201
Email: absenteevoter@boston.gov
Fax: 617-635-4483

• 2021 vote-by-mail application (English) / Solicitud de Voto por Correo 2021 (Español)
• 2021 vote-by-mail application (English) / Đơn Xin Bầu Bằng Thư 2021 (Tiếng Việt)
• 2021 vote-by-mail application (English) / 2021 年郵寄投票申請表 (中文)

You should apply as soon as possible. We need to receive your application at least four business days before Election Day. Remember that it can take up to a week for the mail to be delivered in one direction, so it's best to try to apply at least two to three weeks before the election.

Any written request is acceptable, as long as it is signed. You can write a letter to our office that says you want a ballot:

Election Department
1 City Hall Square, Room 241
Boston, MA 02201

Make sure to include your name, address, and where to mail your ballot.

If you are a registered Boston voter, send your application to our office:

Election Department
1 City Hall Square, Room 241
Boston, MA 02201
Email: absenteevoter@boston.gov
Fax: 617-635-4483

Yes, but the application needs to be signed. You can either:

1. sign your application by hand and email an image of your application to our office, or
2. sign your name using a mouse, stylus, or finger and then send that saved application to our office.

Typed signatures are not acceptable.

Yes. If you have access to a fax machine, you can fax your application to our office at 617-635-4483.

Yes, but your signature has to be similar to your hand-written signature. You can sign your name on a computer or phone using a mouse, finger, or stylus. Typed signatures are not acceptable.

You can use the state's website to track your mail-in ballot. If your application is marked as "Pending," that means your application has been received and your ballot will be mailed out as soon as it is ready. If the website can't find a record for you, that may mean that your application hasn't been received yet. You should call us at 617-635-8683.

A voter with a disability may request an accessible mail-in ballot. This request must be submitted to the accessible vote-by-mail coordinator in the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s Office at 1-800-462-VOTE/TTY: 1-800-720-3480 from 8:45 a.m. - 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

You can use the state's website to track your mail-in ballot. If the ballot has already been mailed, you will be able see the date it was mailed. If the website can't find a record for you, that may mean that your application hasn't been received yet and you should call us at 617-635-8683.

It depends. If you mailed your early ballot back and it was accepted by our office, then your ballot is considered to be cast and you can't vote again. If your ballot never reached our office — or if it was rejected for some reason — then you can vote in person.

If you need assistance voting because you have a physical disability or you have difficulty reading your ballot, you can ask any other person to assist you in marking your ballot in your presence.

If you cannot sign your name on the ballot envelope, the person assisting you should sign your name in the space provided for the voter's signature. They should then provide their own information in the space provided for the assisting person. If you need an accommodation because of a physical disability, you may apply to the state's Elections Division.

No. Only you can fill out your ballot and sign your ballot envelope, unless you are unable to do so because of physical disability or inability to read your ballot. All help must be provided in your presence. You can, however, have a ballot mailed to you wherever you are.

No. You can vote in person as long as you haven't already voted by mail. If you choose not to return your mail-in ballot, you can vote in person on Election Day or during early voting. You can also vote in person if you mail your ballot and it does not reach your election office by Election Day, or if your mail-in ballot is rejected for any reason.

If you don't feel comfortable mailing your ballot, we will have drop boxes located across the City that will be available until 8 p.m. on Election Day. You can also drop off your ballot at any early voting location during the early voting period.

Maybe. First-time voters in Massachusetts are sometimes required by federal law to present ID showing their name and the address where they registered to vote. If you are required to show ID, we will send you a notice with your ballot. Make sure you send a copy of your ID on the outside of your ballot envelope, because the ballot envelope can't be opened until it is time to count the ballots.

You can return you ballot by mail or in person. If you are mailing your ballot, use the return envelope that was provided with the ballot, which is pre-addressed for your convenience. If you don't want to mail your ballot, you can drop if off at any of the drop boxes located across the City of Boston through 8 p.m. on Tuesday, September 14, 2021, as well as at an early voting location during the early voting period. You may also return your ballot to City Hall, during regular working hours Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Our drop boxes will be monitored by surveillance 24 hours a day, seven days a week leading up until 8 p.m. on Election Day.

For the Preliminary Municipal Election, if you're mailing your ballot, it needs to reach us by September 14, 2021. If you're hand-delivering your Preliminary Municipal Election ballot to us or dropping it in a drop box, it needs to be returned by 8 p.m. on September 14.

Yes, you can track your ballot on the state's website. This page will show you:

• if your application has been received
• the date your ballot is mailed
• the date your ballot is received at your local election office, and
• whether your ballot is accepted or rejected.

No, your ballot will not be counted if it arrives after the September 14, 2021 Preliminary Municipal Election date. For the Preliminary Municipal Election, all ballots must arrive by September 14, 2021. If you think your ballot may not arrive in time to be counted, consider returning it by hand-delivery or voting in person.

Your ballot will be counted in a public space, either at your polling place or at a central tabulation facility in Boston. You can use the state's website to confirm your ballot was accepted.

If your ballot was rejected, it is most likely because you did not sign the affidavit on your ballot envelope. The Boston Election Department will notify you if your ballot is rejected and the reason it was rejected.

If there is enough time left before the election, you will also be sent a new ballot. You will also have the option of voting in person until 8 p.m. on Election Day.