What do I do if I make a mistake on my ballot?

If you make a mistake on your ballot, you will need to cure it. Most often, your election official will contact you to notify you of the mistake, what information you need to cure your ballot, and the deadline for doing so and resubmitting it. If you have not recieved a notice to cure your ballot but believe you made a mistake, most states have a website to check your mail-in ballot, see if it has been counted, and if it needs to be cured. You can also contact your election offial directly to make sure they have recieved and wil count your ballot.

Some states have strict ballot deadlines, sometimes as early as election day of the day before it, to schedule to have your ballot cured and resubmitted before then.

If you make a mistake on your ballot envelope (for example, you forget to sign the envelope, or the election official can’t read your handwriting) the election official may require you to “cure” that mistake before they will count the ballot. This is called ballot curing.

In most cases, the election official will notify you promptly if there’s a need to cure your ballot. The notification will tell you what information you need to provide to make the cure (such as signing a new ballot envelope or providing a copy of your ID) and the deadline for submitting that information.

You have several options if you think you may need to cure your ballot but you haven’t received a notice from your election official. Many states offer a website where you can check the status of your mail ballot to see if it has been counted or may need to be cured. You can also reach out directly to your local election official to ensure they received your ballot and will count it. Be aware there can be strict ballot cure deadlines in some states (sometimes as early as Election Day or the day before).