Absentee Voting FAQ

You can vote by absentee Ballot if any of the following applies:

• You will be absent from Cambridge on election day during polling hours;
• You have a physical disability that prevents you from voting at the polling place;
• You cannot vote at the polls due to religious belief. 

To vote absentee by mail, you first have to apply for an Absentee Ballot.  You can do this by either filling out the application form below or by sending a signed request to the Election Office that includes:

• Your name;
• The address where you are registered to vote;
• The address where you want the ballot to be sent;
• The election(s) for which you need an Absentee Ballot.
• YOUR SIGNATURE

If you are an unenrolled voter seeking to vote in a primary, you must indicate the party ballot that you prefer.

Click here for absentee ballot application  

Family member may apply
A family member of a person qualified to vote by Absentee Ballot may apply for that person.

Click here for absentee ballot by a Family Member  

Yes, unless you are a “specially qualified voter” you must be registered to vote to apply for an Absentee Ballot.

A specially qualified voter is a person:

• who is otherwise eligible to register as a voter and
• whose present domicile is outside the United States and whose last domicile in the United States was Massachusetts or whose present domicile is Massachusetts and who is:
  (a) absent from the city or town of residence and in the active service of the armed forces or in the merchant marine of the United States or a spouse or dependent of such person;
  (b) absent from the commonwealth; or
  (c) confined in a correctional facility or a jail, except if by reason of felony conviction.

• You can apply any time until noon on the day before the election. 
• If you are going to vote by mail, be sure to apply with enough time to get the ballot and mail it back by Election Day. 
• If you are going to vote in person, you can go to the Election Office and apply at the same time as you vote. 
• If you are going to vote absentee in more than one election, you can apply for all elections within a calendar year with one application. 

The Election Office must receive your ballot by the close of polls on Election Day.  In a state or federal general election, an Absentee Ballot that has been mailed from outside the United States on or before Election Day must be counted if the Election Office receives it on or before the tenth day after the election.

Absentee Ballots are available for over-the-counter voting at the Cambridge Election Office from twenty days before each election, until noon on the day before the election.

If you are permanently disabled, you may apply to vote from home.  Send a letter to the Election Office from your doctor, stating that you are permanently unable to cast your ballot at the polling place due to a physical disability. The Election Office will automatically mail you an application for an Absentee Ballot for all elections in a calendar year. You must sign the application and send it back.

A person who is a patient or resident of a designated health care facility can submit an application any time until the close of polls on Election Day.  An Election Commissioner will hand-deliver absentee ballots to designated health care facilities.