The deadline to request an absentee ballot in Ohio is Tuesday for the 2024 election. Here's how to vote before Election Day

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Tuesday is the last day Ohioans can request absentee ballots to participate in the 2024 election.

The previous deadline was three days before election day. But state lawmakers pushed back the deadline as part of sweeping election changes last year, scrapping the applications a week before the election. Under the previous deadline, applications filed too close to Election Day may not be returned by mail in time to be considered.

Requests must be made by Tuesday 8:30 p.m.

Ohio does not offer an online tool for requesting mail-in ballots. Applications can be submitted by mail, but they are unlikely to reach the Board of Elections before the deadline if they have not already been mailed. Voters can submit an absentee ballot application directly to their district's election board.

Once you receive your mail-in ballot in the mail, you must return it to the election board in the envelope provided or in person. Ballots can be mailed, or county election boards will provide a drop box outside their offices for voters to drop off.

Absentee ballots sent by mail must be postmarked by November 4th or returned in person to county election officials by the time polls close on Election Day. Ballots sent by mail must arrive at the county elections board within four days of the election in order to be counted.

Election officials have been warning voters for years to be careful with their absentee requests. Voters often enter the current date on which they should enter their birthday, for example, which leads to the application being rejected.

According to the Ohio Secretary of State's Office, more than 1.1 million absentee ballots have been requested in Ohio so far. As of Monday morning, more than 740,000 had been returned. Another 940,000 Ohioans voted early in person.

Election 2024: An Ohio Guide to the November Elections

If you want to vote in the 2024 election, you must first make sure you are registered. The registration deadline for the 2024 election has expired. So if you are not yet registered to vote, you will not be allowed to vote this year.

To find out if you are registered, you can enter your name into a state database: https://voterlookup.ohiosos.gov/.

In addition to voting by mail, Ohioans can cast their ballots in advance in person or on Election Day, November 5th. During early voting, anyone who wishes to vote in person must do so at the board of elections in the county in which they are registered.

To find your county's board of elections, visit the Ohio Secretary of State's Office website for a map and list of Ohio counties.

An Ohio Supreme Court ruling earlier this month confirmed that ballot drop boxes in Ohio's 88 county election boards this year could only be used by people who submit their own mail-in ballots.

Anyone casting a ballot for another person must sign a form, usually at the Board of Elections. In Cuyahoga County, employees will be stationed at mailboxes to process the forms.

Ohio requires in-person voters to show photo ID to vote. These include an Ohio driver's license, an Ohio ID card, a U.S. passport or passport card, a U.S. military ID card, a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs ID card, or an Ohio National Guard ID card.

Changes to Ohio's voter ID law in 2023 have increasingly unsettled voters as thousands of voters were turned away for failing to provide acceptable identification.

If the voter does not have one of the above IDs, they can cast a provisional ballot. However, in order for this ballot to be counted, voters must return to the Board of Elections no later than four days after Election Day and provide qualified identification.

Early in-person voting continues through Nov. 3, but hours change over the weekend and as Election Day approaches. There will be no in-person early voting on the Monday before Election Day. The remaining in-person early voting times are:

Oct. 28: 7:30 a.m. – 7:30 p.m

Oct. 29: 7:30 a.m. – 8:30 p.m

Oct. 30 – Nov. 1: 7:30 a.m. – 7:30 p.m

November 2nd: 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m

November 3rd: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m

Polling stations will be open on election day from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. If you line up to vote before 7:30 p.m., you can still cast your vote as long as you stay in line.