 
Download a Voter Registration Form
Does everyone who wants to vote in Ohio have to be registered to vote here?
Yes.
What are the qualifications to register and to vote in Ohio?
You are qualified to register to vote in Ohio if you meet all the following requirements:
- You are a citizen of the United States;
- You will be at least 18 years old on or before the day of the general election. (If you will be 18 on or before November 4, you may vote in the primary election for candidates, but you cannot vote on issues until you are 18);
- You will be a resident of Ohio for at least 30 days immediately before the election in which you want to vote;
- You are not incarcerated (in prison or jail) for a felony conviction under the laws of this state, another state or the United States;
- You have not been declared incompetent for voting purposes by a probate court; and
- You have not been permanently disenfranchised for violations of the election laws.
You are eligible to vote in elections held in your voting precinct more than 30 consecutive days after you are duly registered to vote in this state.
Where do I vote?
Ohio election officials determine a person's qualifying voting address using guidelines established by Ohio law (Revised Code (R.C.) 3503.02). Where an individual votes depends on where he or she is determined by law to reside. A voter may vote from only one residence. Your voting residence is the place in which your habitation is fixed and to which, whenever you are absent, you intend to return. Your voting residence should be one you consider to be permanent, not temporary. You will not lose your voting residency in Ohio if you leave temporarily and intend to return, unless you are absent from the state for four consecutive years. (Exception: You will not lose your residency after four years if your absence from Ohio is due to your employment with Ohio or the United States government, including military service, unless you vote in, or permanently move to, another state.)
If you do not have a fixed place of habitation, but you are a consistent or regular inhabitant of a shelter or other location to which you intend to return, you may use that shelter or other location as your residence for purposes of registering to vote.
For information on voting rights of U.S. citizens living outside the U.S., please click here, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens.
May a college student register and vote from his or her school address in Ohio?
Yes, a student may vote using his or her Ohio school residence address. However, the student may not also vote an absentee ballot where he or she last lived (e.g. with one or more parent or guardian). When a college student votes from his or her school address, the school residence is considered to be the place to which the student's habitation is fixed and to which, whenever the student is absent, the student intends to return, and is considered by the student to be his or her permanent residence at the time of voting.
How can I register to vote?
You may download a voter registration form from by clicking here. You also may ask the Miami County Board of Elections or the Secretary of State's office to mail a registration form to you.
You may obtain a form in person, and register in person, at any of the following locations:
- The office of the Secretary of State or any of the 88 county boards of elections;
- The office of any Deputy Registrar of the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles;
- Public libraries;
- Public high schools or vocational schools;
- County treasurers' offices; or
- Offices of designated agencies including:
- The Department of Job and Family Services;
- The Department of Health – Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program;
- The Department of Mental Health;
- The Department of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities;
- The Rehabilitation Services Commission; or
- Any state-assisted college or university that provides assistance to disabled students.
When you have completed your voter registration form, please review it carefully for completeness and mail it or personally deliver it to your county board of elections or the Secretary of State's Office. Another person, or one of the offices listed above, may deliver it for you, but you will want to ensure it reaches the board within 10 days and no later than 30 days before the election at which you want to vote.
What is the registration deadline?
Ohio has a 30-day voter registration requirement. If you register to vote by mail, your properly completed and signed registration application may be mailed to the Miami County board of elections at Miami County Courthouse, 215 W. Main Street, Troy, OH 45373 or the Secretary of State's Office at 180 East Broad Street, 15th floor, Columbus, Ohio 43215. Your voter registration form must be postmarked by the 30th day before the first election at which you want to vote.
If you do not submit your registration application by mail, you, personally, must deliver the form to a county board of elections, the office of the Secretary of State, a public library, high school or vocational school, county treasurer's office, any Deputy Registrar of the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles office or designated agency no later than 30 days before the election at which you want to vote.
If you do not make the deadline, your registration counts for the next succeeding election and beyond. To keep your registration on file you must vote at least once during a period of two succeeding federal general elections after you register.
If you are entrusting another person to deliver your completed form, that person must deliver your registration form to a county board of elections or the Secretary of State's office within 10 days or by the registration deadline, whichever is earlier.
What if I am unable to sign my voter registration form or other election documents?
Ohio law requires a person to sign or affix a signature to the voter registration application. "Sign" or "signature" means your written, cursive-style legal mark written in your own handwriting.
However, if you do not use a cursive-style legal mark in your regular business and legal affairs, "sign" or "signature" means your other legal mark that you use in your regular business and legal affairs that is written in your own handwriting.
If you are unable to sign your own name and have no other legal mark, make an "X," if possible, on the application signature line and have the person who witnessed you making that mark place his/her name and address beneath the signature line.
If you are unable to make an "X," you must indicate in some manner that you want to register to vote. The person registering you must sign the form and attest that you indicated that you want to register to vote.
May a power of attorney be used to sign a voter registration form?
If by reason of disability you are unable to physically sign your name or affix your mark to the application, and you have appointed an attorney-in-fact according to the specific requirements of R.C. 3501.382, your attorney-in-fact may sign it on your behalf, at your direction and in your presence. This is the only situation in which a power of attorney may be used to sign a voter registration form, and only powers of attorney prepared according to R.C. 3501.352 may be used.
What are my obligations to keep the board of elections informed of address or name changes?
If you are already registered to vote but have moved within Ohio and/or changed your name, you must update your voter registration by completing a new voter registration form or change of address form.
Change of address forms may be obtained by clicking here, at all locations where voter registration forms may be obtained, and from the probate court and the court of common pleas of any Ohio county.
Your completed form may be delivered in person to any of these offices by you: the Secretary of State, a board of elections, a public high school or vocational school, a public library, a county treasurer's office, any Deputy Registrar of the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles or an office of a designated agency. Designated agencies include:
- The Department of Job and Family Services;
- The Department of Health - Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program;
- The Department of Mental Health;
- The Department of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities;
- The Rehabilitation Services Commission; and
- Any state-assisted college or university that provides assistance to disabled students.
If you return your completed form by mail, you must send it to the Miami County Board of Elections or the Secretary of State's Office at 180 East Broad Street, 15th floor, Columbus, Ohio 43215.
If your change of name and/or address form is completed properly, the board of elections will update your registration and send you a notice. If the form is incomplete, the board will send you a notice of the information necessary to update your registration. If your valid change form is received or postmarked at least 29 days before an election, you will be eligible to vote a regular (rather than a provisional) ballot at that election. You may vote either in person on or before Election Day or by mail via absentee ballot.
You may also update your registration during the 28 days immediately before, or on the day of, an election, but this may require you to vote a "provisional ballot" as described later in this guide.
Do I declare my political party affiliation when I register?
No. Under Ohio law, you may declare your political party affiliation by requesting either a Republican or Democratic ballot in a partisan primary election. If you are "Independent," you are considered independent of any political party. Political parties other than Democratic or Republican may or may not qualify for a primary election ballot, depending on the political party's previous activities to qualify under the law.
Where do I send my completed absentee ballot request form?
Send your completed absentee ballot request form to the Miami County Board of Elections or the or mail your registration form to the Ohio Secretary of State's office at 180 East Broad Street, 15th Floor, Columbus, Ohio 43215.
May I vote if I have been convicted of a crime?
As noted under the "Voter Registration" section of this guide, a person currently serving time in jail or prison for a felony conviction cannot register to vote or vote. Additionally, a person who has twice been convicted of a violation of the elections laws is permanently barred from voting in Ohio. An otherwise qualified person convicted of a misdemeanor may vote, and one convicted of a felony may register and vote while on probation or parole or after completing his or her jail or prison sentence.
What happens after I submit my voter registration application?
A board of elections must accept your voter registration application if the information contained within the application is found to be complete and truthful. Once accepted, the board must register you to vote not later than 20 business days after receiving your application and promptly mail a notice to your voting residence address confirming that you are registered to vote, identifying your voting precinct and the location of your precinct polling place, and stating the identification requirements for voting.
If the board does not accept your registration application, it must immediately mail you a notice stating why your application was rejected and requesting you to provide whatever information or verification is necessary to complete your application.
If you do not receive a notice that your registration was accepted or rejected, please contact your county board of elections before Election Day to determine if the board received your application.
Can I check my voter information online?
Yes. You may check your voter information by performing a "Voter Information Search" by clicking here. If performing such a search returns the information you registered, your county board of elections has successfully processed your voter registration form. If the search does not return your information, please contact your county board of elections to check on the status of your registration. You may also be able to check your voter information through your county board of elections' Web site, although not all county boards have the capacity to provide this service.
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