Voting in Washington

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All voters are eligible to vote absentee/by mail in Washington; no excuse is needed. All registered voters in Washington should automatically receive absentee/vote-by-mail ballots at the address where they are registered.

Washington offers in-person early voting. No excuse is needed to vote early. Early voting begins 18 days before an election and ends the day before an election.

Washington has open presidential primaries. Voters are not asked for party affiliation when registering to vote, and are only asked for a party declaration in presidential primaries -- however, this has no bearing on how a voter may vote in future presidential primaries. For all other primaries, Washington uses a top-two primary system that allows voters to choose among all candidates running for each office. The two candidates who receive the most votes in the Primary Election qualify for the General Election. 17-year-olds cannot vote in the primary election even if they will be 18 by the corresponding general election.

ID is not required to vote by mail in Washington, with the exception of federal Help America Vote Act (HAVA) requirements for first-time voters. ID is required to vote in person in Washington. Valid Forms of ID include:
- driver's license
- state identification card
- student identification card
- tribal identification card
- employer identification card
If a voter does not have a valid ID, they may submit a provisional ballot which will be counted if the signature on the ballot matches the signature on their voter registration.