NORFOLK, Va. — Tuesday is National Voter Registration Day, which aims to promote awareness of voter registration opportunities and get people to register who may not otherwise.
According to the Virginia Department of Elections, to be eligible to vote in Virginia elections, people must:
- Be a permanent resident of Virginia (not just someone who is here for an extended period).
- Be a U.S. citizen.
- Be 18 years old (if someone will be 18 on the day of the general election, they can vote in the primary when they are 17).
- Not be registered and planning to vote in another state.
- Must be mentally competent.
- Convicted felons must have had their voting rights restored.
The state of Virginia offers online registration here for voting. At that link, people can also find their polling place and apply for absentee voting by mail.
However, if you register to vote using the online Citizen Portal after Oct. 16, 2023, you will not be able to cast your ballot in the Nov. 7, 2023 General Election.
If you need to register to vote after Oct. 16, you'll need to follow Virginia's same-day voter registration guidelines. Same-day registration begins Oct. 17, 2023 and is only available in-person at the general registrar’s office for your locality, at your satellite early voting site during the early voting period, and at your precinct on Election Day.
Deadlines for Virginia's 2023 November elections:
All 140 seats of the Virginia General Assembly will be on the ballot in November. Right now, Republicans hold the House of Delegates, while Democrats hold the Virginia Senate.
- First day of in-person voting at the local registrar's office: September 22
- Deadline to register to vote: October 16 (People can still register after this date and vote with a provisional ballot - People just have to register before they vote, even if that means registering on the day they vote)
- Deadline to request a mail-in ballot: October 27
- Voter registration offices open for early voting: October 28
- Last day of in-person early voting: November 4
- Election Day: November 7
People who are voting in Virginia will need to take their ID with them.