86 DAYS UNTIL ELECTION DAY
By Andrew Park and Amy Schoenfeld Walker
Take a look at important dates and voting deadlines in your state. States vary in when they send out mail ballots and when completed ballots need to be received. Election rules may still be changed by states. This calendar will be updated regularly.
August
September
First state
begins
mail voting
2
1
2
3
1
3
4
5
6
7
Democratic
National
Convention
5
9
4
6
7
8
9
10
8
10
11
12
13
14
Presidential
Debate
12
15
16
11
13
14
15
16
17
17
18
19
20
21
18
19
22
23
20
21
22
23
24
24
25
26
27
28
First state starts
early voting
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
29
30
October
November
1
2
3
4
5
1
2
7
6
7
8
9
6
8
9
10
11
12
3
4
5
Election Day
14
12
13
15
16
17
18
19
10
11
13
14
15
16
20
21
18
19
22
23
24
25
26
17
20
21
22
23
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
24
27
28
29
30
August
September
First state
begins
mail voting
1
2
3
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Democratic
National
Convention
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
8
9
11
12
13
14
10
Presidential
Debate
11
12
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
13
14
15
16
17
18
23
24
22
23
24
25
27
28
19
20
21
22
26
26
25
27
28
29
30
31
29
30
First state starts
early voting
October
November
1
2
1
2
3
4
5
3
4
6
7
8
9
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Election Day
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
17
19
20
21
22
23
18
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
27
28
29
30
31
Jump to: ConventionsDebatesVote by mailEarly votingElection
Conventions
The Democratic National Convention is scheduled for late August.
The Republican Party held its national convention in July at which it formally nominated former President Donald J. Trump and JD Vance as its presidential and vice presidential candidates.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Aug. 19–22 | Democratic National Convention Democrats will convene in Chicago to formally nominate the party's presidential and vice presidential candidates. |
Debates
Mr. Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic nominee, will face off in a prime-time matchup hosted by ABC News on Sept. 10. After President Biden’s exit from the race — spurred in part by his June 27 debate performance — Mr. Trump had initially canceled this date, but changed his mind.
Mr. Trump has proposed two other dates, to which Ms. Harris has not yet agreed.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Sept. 4 | Proposed Presidential Debate Date proposed by Mr. Trump to debate Ms. Harris on Fox News. Ms. Harris had not agreed to this debate as of Aug. 8. |
| Sept. 10 | Presidential Debate Ms. Harris and Mr. Trump are scheduled to participate in a debate hosted by ABC News. |
| Sept. 25 | Proposed Presidential Debate Date proposed by Mr. Trump to debate Ms. Harris on NBC News. Ms. Harris had not agreed to this debate as of Aug. 8. |
| T.B.D. | Vice Presidential Debate The campaigns have not yet agreed on having a vice presidential debate. |
Vote by mail
A majority of voters live in states that allow voting by mail, though some states require an excuse — like travel, work or illness — to be eligible to receive a ballot. Many states have deadlines to request mail ballots that are less than two weeks before Election Day, but the Postal Service recommends that voters request them as early as possible and mail them at least one week before their state’s ballot return deadline.
To be counted, ballots in some states must be postmarked by a certain date, while some states require them to be received by a certain time (often by poll close time on Election Day). This deadline may be different for ballots returned in person, as opposed to through the mail. Check with your county officials for more details.
Each circle below represents one state.
Mail voting period begins
Deadline to request ballot by mail
Deadline for mail ballots to be returned
Note: The mail ballot return deadline for 32 states is Nov. 5. Some states do not provide an exact date they start sending mail ballots to voters. The earliest date on which ballots are sent may vary from dates in the table. Dates shown above are for domestic voters in those states, deadlines for those in the military or living abroad may differ.
Mail voting period begins
| Date | States | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept. 6 | North Carolina | |||
| Sept. 11 | Alabama | |||
| Sept. 16 | Kentucky, Pennsylvania | |||
| Sept. 20 | Minnesota, New York, South Dakota, Virginia, West Virginia | |||
| Sept. 21 | Idaho, Louisiana, New Jersey | |||
Deadline to request ballot by mail
| Date | States | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct. 15 | Rhode Island | |||
| Oct. 16 | District of Columbia | |||
| Oct. 21 | Iowa, Oklahoma | |||
| Oct. 22 | Kentucky, New Mexico | |||
| Oct. 23 | Missouri | |||
Postmark deadline for ballots returned by mail
| Date | States |
|---|---|
| Nov. 4 | North Dakota, Ohio, Utah |
| Nov. 5 | Alaska, California, District of Columbia, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Mississippi, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia |
Deadline for mail ballots to be returned
States with return deadlines after Nov. 5 require ballots to be postmarked by Election Day.
| Date | States | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov. 4 | Louisiana | |||
| Nov. 5 | Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Wisconsin, Wyoming | |||
| Nov. 6 | Texas | |||
| Nov. 8 | Kansas, Virginia | |||
| Nov. 9 | Nevada, Ohio | |||
Early voting
Starting in September, voters can visit a polling location or cast their absentee ballot in person in states that allow one or both methods. For many states, early voting rules vary by county, so check with local officials for details.
Early voting starts
Early voting ends
Early voting starts
| Date | States | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept. 20 | Virginia | |||
| Sept. 26 | Illinois | |||
| Oct. 7 | California | |||
| Oct. 8 | Indiana, New Mexico, Ohio | |||
| Oct. 9 | Arizona | |||
Early voting ends
| Date | States | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct. 29 | Louisiana | |||
| Oct. 31 | Maryland, Tennessee | |||
| Nov. 1 | Arizona, Georgia, Idaho, Massachusetts, Texas, Utah | |||
| Nov. 2 | Florida, Kentucky, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia | |||
| Nov. 3 | Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Michigan, New Jersey, New York | |||
Election Day
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Nov. 5 | Election Day |
