Absentee Voting

Am I eligible to vote absentee by mail?

To vote by-mail, a registered voter must meet certain requirements. You can vote absentee by-mail if you fall under one of the following categories:

• You are sixty (60) years of age or older.
• You will be outside the county where you are registered during the early voting period and all day on Election Day.
• You are hospitalized, ill or physically disabled, and because of such condition, you are unable to appear at my polling place.
• You are a caretaker of a hospitalized, ill or disabled person.
• You or your spouse are a full-time student in an accredited college or university outside the county where you are registered.
• You reside in a nursing home, assisted living facility or home for the aged outside your county of residence.
• You are a candidate for office in the election.
• You are observing a religious holiday that prevents you from voting in person during the early voting period and on Election Day.
• You serve as an Election Day official or as a member or employee of the election commission.
• You will be unable to vote in-person due to jury duty.
• You have a physical disability and an inaccessible polling place.
• You or your spouse possess a valid commercial drivers license (CDL) or Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) card and you will be working outside the state or county of registration during the open hours of early voting and Election Day and have no specific out-of-county or out-of-state address to which mail may be sent or received during such time.
• You are a member of the military or are an overseas citizen.
• You are on the permanent absentee list.

44A registered voter may request an application for a by-mail ballot no earlier than ninety days before the election and no later than 7 days before the election. To be processed for the next election, the application must be received by the election commission no later than 7 days before the election. Each request time period is outlined below. Your request cannot be processed if not received within these dates.

For the March 5, 2024, County Primary-Absentee ballot must be requested between December 6, 2023 and February 27, 2024.

For the August 1, 2024, General/ Fed and State Primary-Absentee ballot must be requested between May 3, 2024 and July 25, 2024.

For the November 5, 2024, Fed and State General/City Elections-Absentee ballot must be requested between August 7, 2024 and October 29, 2024.

Note: The request must be in office before the day of, not postmarked by day.

*******There are multiple ways to request an absentee ballot for a particular election as outlined below*******

1. Call us at 865-397-3440 or come by and request us to send you the absentee ballot request. Sign it and check the appropriate party preference (if applicable to a Primary Election) and mail the request back to the Jefferson County Election Commission.
2. If you are not in the military or not an out of country US Citizen, you can use the fillable on-line Regular Absentee Request. Print it out, sign it and return it to the Jefferson County Election Commission.
3. If you are in the military or are an out of country US Citizen, you will use the Military/Overseas Ballot (FPCA Form 76). Either of the following links can be used. One is for first time users which will take you to the FVAP site and walks you through filling out the form. If you are already familiar with the Form 76 then you can use the (repeat user) link. The completed FPCA form 76 form will act as a request for all elections to be held in the upcoming election cycle. You will have to print the form after completing it, sign it, and mail to the Jefferson County Election Commission. Postage is not necessary for military applicants but you will need to use the Military Postage Template provided with the form.

Military/Overseas Voter Ballot Request (first-time user form with instructions)
Military/Overseas Ballot Request (repeat user; form only)

4. If you do not choose to use the request form above, you may also request a by-mail absentee ballot, through mail, fax, or email with an attached document, which includes “your actual scanned signature” and the following information directly to your local county election commission office:

1. Name of the registered voter.
2. Address of the voter’s residence.
3. Voter’s social security number.
4. Voter’s date of birth.
5. 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)
6. The election in which the voter wishes to participate. If the election involves a primary, the political party in which the voter wishes to participate.
7. Reason the voter wishes to vote absentee. (must meet certain requirements) If applicable, a copy of the CDL containing the CDL number or the TWIC card must be included in the voter’s request.
8. Voter’s signature.

A request that contains this information will be processed and a ballot will be mailed to the voter. You must check to see if you meet the qualifications under the certain requirements tab in order for us to process the request. The request must contain your actual signature in order to process. If the necessary requirements are not completed then the request will be rejected.

Your request needs to be mailed to the Jefferson County Election Commission, PO Box 177, Dandridge, TN 37725

Or: Emailed to Elections@jeffersoncountytn.gov.

For more information, please visit the State of Tennessee’s page on Absentee Voting.