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• When does absentee voting start?
• What are the qualifications for obtaining an absentee ballot?
• Am I eligible to vote absentee?
• How do I apply for an absentee ballot?
• Where do I mail the application?
• What is the deadline for voting absentee?
• What if my application is postmarked Thursday?
• Can I vote absentee in person?
• Do I need an ID to vote absentee?
• If I am voting absentee by mail, when do I send in the copy of my ID?
• How do I find out where my voting precinct is?
• Does my absentee ballot have to be witnessed or notarized?
• I have a relative serving in the military, how can they vote absentee?
• I have power-of-attorney for a relative, can I vote for them?
• I have moved since the last election, how will this affect my being able to vote absentee?
• Do I have to file a new application for every election?
• What if I find out after the Thursday afternoon deadline that I have to go out of the county for employment reasons?
• Must I declare a particular party to vote?
• Who do I contact to vote absentee in city elections?

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The Probate Judge is required by law to provide ballots and supplies to the Absentee Election Manager 40 days before an election.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR A TRADITIONAL ABSENTEE BALLOT
§17-10-3, Code of Alabama

• The voter will be out of the county or state on election day.
• The voter is physically incapacitated and will not be able to vote in person on election day.
• The voter works a shift which has at least (10) hours that coincide with the polling hours at their regular polling place.
• The voter is a student at and educational institution located outside the county of their permanent residence; and are, therefore, unable to vote at their usual polling place on election day.
• The voter is a member of, or a spouse of a member of, the armed forces of the United States or are otherwise entitled to vote by absentee pursuant the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, 42, U.S.C. 1973ff.
• The voter has been appointed as an election officer at a polling place which is not their regular polling place.

If you are registered to vote in Shelby County and meet one of the above requirements, then you are eligible. If you are not registered to vote in Shelby County, you will need to contact the Board of Registrars at (205) 669-3913 to register. By law the cut-off date to register to be eligible to vote in an upcoming election is 10 days before the election. You can download a voter registration form here. It should be mailed to the Board of Registrars at PO Box 1642, Columbiana, AL 35051.

You can call Mary H. Harris, Absentee Election Manager at (205) 669-3779 or come by and pick up an application at room 128 at the Shelby County Courthouse, Columbiana, AL 35051. You can also download the form available in the Absentee Voting Files and Links section. PLEASE READ INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU FILL OUT AND MAIL IN YOUR APPLICATION.

The application must be mailed to: Mary H. Harris, Absentee Election Manager, P.O. Box 1810, Columbiana, AL 35051. By law ( AG Opinion 82-551), each application must be mailed in a separate envelope. Multiple applications (even for husband and wife) which are mailed in the same envelope will be returned to the voter. Applications cannot be faxed to the Absentee Election Manager.

The cut-off date is 5 days before an election. Since elections are typically held on a Tuesday, this would be on the preceding Thursday. Your application must be received in the office on or before this date for me to be able to mail you a ballot, or you can vote in person at the office of the Absentee Election Manager through Thursday.

Your application must physically be in the Absentee Election Manager's office on Thursday. That is the cut-off date for mailing a ballot.

Yes, you can come by the Absentee Election Manager's office Monday through Friday 8:00AM - 4:30PM (except on holidays) and make application and vote while you are in the office. The cut-off date is Thursday (five days before an election). The address is room 128 at the Shelby County Courthouse, Columbiana, AL.

Yes, you will need to present one of the following forms of ID before you can vote:

1. Current, Valid Photo Identification
• Government-issued photo identifications (current and valid).
• Employee identification for employee with photo of employee produced by the employer.
• Photo identification card issued by Alabama college or university.
• Photo identification issued from Alabama technical or professional school (current and valid).

OR

2. One of the following:
• Utility bill of voter with voter's name and address.
• Bank statement with voter's name and address.
• Government check with voter's name and address.
• Paycheck with voter's name and address.
• Valid identification card (authorized by law) issued by the State of Alabama (including any branch, department, agency, or entity of the State of Alabama).
• Valid identification card (authorized by law) issued by any of the other 49 states (including any branch, department, agency, or entity of that State).
• Valid identification card (authorized by law) issued by the government of the United States of America (including any branch, department, agency, or entity of the federal government).
• Valid United States passport.
• Valid Alabama hunting license.
• Valid Alabama fishing license.
• Valid Alabama pistol/revolver permit.
• Valid pilot's license issued by the FAA or other authorized agency of the federal government.
• Valid United States military identification.
• Birth certificate (certified copy).
• Valid Social Security card.
• Naturalization document (certified copy).
• Court record of adoption (certified copy).
• Court record of name change (certified copy).
• Valid Medicaid card.
• Valid Medicare card.
• Valid electronic benefits transfer (EBT) card.
• Government document that shows the name and address of the voter.

After you make application, you will receive your ballot and supplies. You will need to send a copy of your ID at that time. Please read your instructions carefully as to how it is to be returned. Do not seal up your ID in either one of the white envelopes. Your ID should be placed inside the brown return envelope.

You can call the Shelby County Board of Registrars at (205) 669-3913 for information on your voting precinct. A general precinct map is also available on the website. This map is without landmarks and labeled roads. If you are unsure which precinct you are in, call the Shelby County Board of Registrars.

• View the Precinct map as Adobe PDF

Yes, by law, your ballot must either be notarized OR witnessed by two people 18 years of age or older. These may be other family members. If your ballot has not been notarized or witnessed by 2 people, it will not be counted.

They need to contact the military voting assistance officer and request Standard Form 76-A which is a Federal Post Card Absentee Ballot Request. It is postage pre-paid. These applications are good for 2 federal election cycles, so once this application is received, the applicant will automatically be mailed a ballot for upcoming elections they are eligible to vote in. For more information, go to www.fvap.gov. You can also download an Absentee Ballot Application from this website. The Absentee Election Manager should be notified if there is a change of address of military voter between elections. Since Form 76-A is good for 4 years, this is important in getting their ballot to the correct address. Unless we are otherwise notified, ballots will be mailed to the same address for 4 years. At this time, Alabama law, AG Opinion 04-209, does not allow voting by either fax or e-mail by military personnel.

No, at this time the law ( AG Opinion 84-359) does not allow a person to vote for someone else.

You need to get in touch with the Board of Registrars at (205) 669-3913 and update your address. If I receive your application and the residence address is different than what is on file with the Board of Registrars, you will have to vote a Provisional Ballot.

The law states that any elections which are 30 days apart, must have a new application (except military absentee applications). This also now applies to the Primary and Primary Runoff as they are more than 30 days apart.

The law provides for a voter to vote business emergency if you find out after the Thursday deadline that you have to go out of the county or state for business reasons. You can go to the Absentee Election Manager's Office and vote in person on Thursday and Monday before the Tuesday election. (Unless either of these two days is a federal/state holiday.)

To vote in the Primary Election, you must designate the party which you wish to receive a ballot for. You cannot vote a Republican and a Democrat ballot. In the General Election in November, you can vote for candidates from any of the parties on the ballot.

You need to call your city clerk at the city hall in the municipality you live in.