By Rhianwen Watkins, Granite State News Collaborative

For many people, circumstances are such that they won’t be able to vote in person at the polls on Election Day.

Perhaps you are a college student and can’t make it back to your hometown to vote where you are registered. Perhaps you have a disability that requires you to cast your vote remotely. Or you’ll simply be out of town when votes are cast in person.

These cases, and many others, are reasons to use an absentee ballot, which is exactly the same as the ballot you would fill out at the polls, except you receive it ahead of time and deliver it by hand or by mail in time for it to be received on Election Day. 

How do I know if I qualify for an absentee ballot?

The first step is to find out if  you qualify to vote absentee. 

In addition to being out of town or having a disability or illness, other reasons that qualify are religious observances that prohibit you from voting in person, work obligations, having to care for an adult or child during the entire time that the polls are open, or confinement in a penal institution for conviction of a misdemeanor or awaiting trial.

You may also qualify if you are a member of the attorney general’s Address Confidentiality Program or protected by a domestic violence protective order, you also qualify.

If the National Weather Service has issued a blizzard, winter storm or ice storm warning in your town, and you feel uncomfortable traveling to the polls in those conditions, you may also request an absentee ballot.

How to obtain an absentee ballot

Once you have determined your eligibility, the next step is to make sure you are registered to vote. If not, you can register by mail, which can be done by contacting the clerk of the town or city where you live. You can search the contact info for your clerk via the New Hampshire secretary of state’s website.

Once you know you are registered, you must complete an absentee ballot application form, which is located on the bottom of the “Absentee Ballots” page on the secretary of state’s website. There are separate application forms for local and state elections.  The application must be filled out with either a No. 2 pencil or a pen. 

According to the nonprofit voter information website Citizens Count, If you are unable to read the application due to blindness or low vision, screen readers such as NVDA and JAWS are available and will read the contents of the document aloud to you.

After filling out the application, send it to your town or city clerk’s office. This can be done by mail, fax, email or you can deliver it by hand.

If your application is approved, you will receive a packet in the mail with a ballot as well as an “affidavit envelope” to keep your ballot sealed. 

To track the status of your application, you can search the voter information lookup on the secretary of state’s website to check whether the clerk received your request. You can also use this link to see when the absentee ballot was sent to you and, after you receive it and send in your ballot, you can track when the clerk receives your vote.

How to fill out and send in the absentee ballot

Once you receive the ballot in the mail, fill it out the same way you would at the polls. 

In addition to the ballot itself, you will also receive an “affidavit envelope.” Once you have filled out the ballot, place it inside the affidavit envelope and seal it. 

Then you must sign one of the two affidavits on the envelope - whichever applies to your situation. 

These will be either the “Physically Disabled” affidavit or the “Temporarily Absent” affidavit, for all other reasons besides disability. 

If you are disabled and need assistance with filling out your ballot, you may have someone help you, as long as they sign the affidavit envelope.

Once the ballot is inside the signed affidavit envelope, place it inside the return envelope.

Fill out the return envelope and either turn it in by hand to your town or city clerk’s office, or send it by mail with correct postage to the clerk’s office address. 

If you want to turn it in by hand but need someone to do it for you, they may do so as long as they meet the legal requirements of a “delivery agent” and bring a photo ID with them. 

According to Citizens Count, a legal “delivery agent” is typically a family member. However, if you reside in a nursing home or other care facility, a caregiver may qualify.

What is the timeline for all of this?

It is important to make sure you begin this process well ahead of the election, especially if you need to register beforehand.

 It may take some time following the submission of your absentee application form and to receive your ballot in the mail, so make sure you submit the application weeks ahead of time. 

If delivered by hand, absentee ballots must be received by 5 p.m. the day before Election Day. If mailed, they must be received by 5 p.m. on Election Day. But it never hurts to mail it in at least a few days early.

Casting your vote is your democratic right and responsibility, so make sure you plan ahead to make your vote count.

The Know Your Vote, youth voter guide  project was designed, reported and produced by student and young professional journalists from The Clock,The Concord Monitor, The Equinox, Granite State News Collaborative, Keene State College, The Laconia Daily Sun, The Monadnock Ledger-Transcript, Nashua Ink Link and The Presidency and the Press program at Franklin Pierce University. See the full guide at  www.collaborativenh.org/know-your-vote.