2026 election

Voting in Tennessee

Primary

Held

Thursday, August 6

Early voting

July 17th – August 1st

General

Tuesday, November 3

Early voting

October 14 – October 29

Register by: October 5
Request a mail ballot by: October 24
Mailed ballot must arrive by: November 3 close of polls

See every race and candidate on your Tennessee ballot, and where each one stands, before you vote.

Plan your ballot →

How to cast your ballot

By mail

You need one of these reasons:

I am 60 years of age or older.
I will be outside my county during all hours of early voting and before the polls close on Election Day.
I am a full-time student or spouse of a full-time student outside my county.
I am a voter with a disability and my polling place is inaccessible.
I reside in a licensed facility, outside my county, providing relatively permanent domiciliary care, i.e. Nursing Home.
I am hospitalized, ill or physically disabled and unable to appear at my polling place to vote (this includes persons who have underlying medical or health conditions which in their determination render them more susceptible to contracting COVID-19 or at greater risk should they contract it).
You are the caretaker of a person who is hospitalized, ill, or disabled (this includes caretakers for persons who have underlying medical or health conditions which in their determination render them more susceptible to contracting COVID-19 or at greater risk should they contract it).
I am a candidate for office in the election.
I will be serving on jury duty.
I will be serving as an election official or a member or employee of the election commission on Election Day.
I am observing a religious holiday that prevents me from voting during early voting or on Election Day.
I have a CDL or TWIC or I am a spouse of a person with a CDL or TWIC and will be out of the county during early voting and Election Day
I am a member of the military, spouse or dependent, an activated National Guard member on state orders, overseas citizen and otherwise qualified to vote in Tennessee (must include mailing address outside county even if ballot is emailed).

Request a ballot Track your ballot The rules

In person

Polls open on election day: Varies by County
Or vote early: In the windows shown above

What counts as ID

You will need to show photo ID to vote in Tennessee.

Acceptable forms include (can be expired):

Tennessee driver's license
US passport
photo ID issued by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security
photo ID issued by the federal or Tennessee state government
US military photo ID
Tennessee handgun carry permit with your photo

College student IDs, photo ID issued by the county or city, such as library cards, and photo IDs issued by other states are not acceptable.

If you're a first-time voter who registered by mail or online and your ID is expired, you will also need to show proof of residence to vote. Acceptable forms include:

copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, or paycheck
other government document that shows your name and address

Voters without ID: If you are unable to provide ID, you will be able to vote a provisional ballot. You will then have two (2) business days after Election Day to return to the election commission office to show a valid photo ID. Upon returning to the election commission office, you will sign an affidavit and a copy of your photo ID will be made to be reviewed by the counting board.

For more information, please visit the Tennessee Secretary of State's website.

Find your polling place Early voting

Before you can vote

Registering

Ways to register:

Who can register, and what you need

To register in Tennessee you must:

be a United States citizen
be a Tennessee resident
be at least 18 years old on or before the next election
have not been convicted of a felony, or if you have a felony conviction that caused you to lose your voting rights, you must have had your conviction expunged or had your voting rights restored, unless you were convicted of a crime that rendered you permanently ineligible to vote

*You can find more information on voting rights restoration here*

Check if you are registered Register

Which primary can you vote in?

You are NOT required to register with a party to participate in Tennessee partisan primary elections.

Dates, deadlines and rules come from DemocracyWorks, last refreshed August 27, 2026; poll hours from our own election guide. Rules change — check with your election office before you rely on a date.