All states allow absentee voting, but there are many differences in their procedures and deadlines.

Forty states plus Washington, D.C., allow voters to come to their polling place in-person days or weeks before the election. There are 34 states, plus Washington, D.C., that allow any registered voter to request an absentee ballot without an excuse. Five of those states – Washington, Oregon, Utah, Colorado and Hawaii – conduct their elections with all-mail voting, while also giving voters the option to vote early in-person at the polls.