2026 election

Voting in Virginia

Primary

Held

Tuesday, August 4

Early voting

June 18th – August 1st

General

Tuesday, November 3

Early voting

September 18 – October 31

Register online by: October 23, 11:59pm
Register by mail by: October 23
Register in person by: October 31
Request a mail ballot by: October 23, 5pm
Mail it back postmarked by: November 3 and received by November 6, 12pm
Or drop it off by: November 3, 7pm

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

Plan your ballot →

How to cast your ballot

By mail

Any registered voter may vote by mail — no reason needed.

If you registered to vote online AND you did not include a copy of your ID with the application AND this is your first time voting you may need to vote in person and show ID.

Request a ballot Track your ballot The rules Where to drop it off

In person

Polls open on election day: 6am – 7pm
Or vote early: In the windows shown above

What counts as ID

You will need to show ID to vote in Virginia.

Acceptable forms of ID include:

Virginia driver’s license (current or expired)
Virginia DMV-issued ID card (current or expired)
valid employee photo ID card issued by your employer
US Military ID
valid student photo ID issued by a US higher education institution (public or private)
valid student ID issued by a Virginia high school (public or private)
valid US passport or passport card
government-issued ID card from a federal, Virginia, or local political subdivision
Virginia voter ID card
voter confirmation documents
valid tribal enrollment or other tribal ID issued by one of the 11 tribes recognized by Virginia
nursing home resident ID if issued by a government facility
utility bill, bank statement, government check, or paycheck issued in the last 12 months and containing your name and address
any other current government document containing your name and address

Voters without ID:

If you are unable to provide ID, you can sign an ID Confirmation Statement that says you are the registered voter you claim to be and vote a ballot. If you neither provide acceptable identification nor sign an ID Confirmation Statement, you must vote a provisional ballot, and you will be given instructions on what to do so your vote can count. You will need to submit a copy of a valid ID or sign an ID Confirmation Statement by 12:00 p.m. the Friday after the election.

Find your polling place Early voting

Before you can vote

Registering

Ways to register:

Online
By mail
At the polls on election day

Virginia lets you pre-register from age 16, so you are on the roll the moment you turn 18.

Who can register, and what you need

To register in Virginia you must:

be a United States citizen
be a Virginia resident (if you come to Virginia for temporary purposes and intend to return to another state, you are not considered a resident for voting purposes)
be 18 years old (if you are 17 years old and will be 18 years old at the next general election, you can register in advance and vote in any intervening primary or special election)
not be registered and plan to vote in another state
have your right to vote restored if convicted of a felony that requires it. Learn more.
not currently be declared mentally incompetent by a court of law

Check if you are registered Register

Which primary can you vote in?

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

Also voted on August 4: Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Washington.

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.