General Election 2019: Absentee Voting, Arlington Deadlines

ARLINGTON, VA — Virginia House of Delegates, Senate, sheriff and commonwealth attorney will be on the ballot for Arlington voters in the Nov. 5 general election. Absentee voting opened on Sept. 20, and voters should be aware of other election-related deadlines.

Absentee voting is available in-person or by mail. In-person absentee voting will be open through Saturday, Nov. 2, at 5 p.m. The deadline for mailed ballots to be received by the Voter Registration Office is Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. The deadline to submit an application for an absentee ballot is Tuesday, Oct. 29 at 5 p.m.

Who can vote absentee

Absentee voting is an alternative to voting on Election Day for those unable to make it to the polls.
A Virginia resident can cast an absentee ballot if he or she is:

• A spouse of student attending college or university outside locality of residence in Virginia
• Have personal business, work or vacation outside the county of residence on Election Day
• Working and commuting for 11 or more hours, between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m., on Election Day
• A "first responder" (firefighter, law enforcement, emergency medical technician, search and rescue)
• Have a disability or illness
• A caregiver for a family member confined at home.
• Pregnant
• Confined (awaiting trial or convicted of a misdemeanor)
• An electoral board member, registrar, officer of election, or custodian of voting equipment
• Attending a religious obligation
• Active Duty Merchant Marine or Armed Forces
• Spouse or dependent living with a member of Active Duty Merchant Marine or Armed Forces
• Temporarily residing outside of US
• Temporarily residing outside of US for employment or spouse or dependent residing with employee
• An authorized representative of candidate or party serving inside the polling place
• Granted a protective order issued by or under the authority of a court of competent jurisdictio

How to vote absentee in person

An acceptable form of photo identification is required for in-person voting. Residents can obtain a free temporary ID when casting an absentee ballot in person.

To see a sample ballot and find out where you need to go to cast your vote in person, click here.

How to vote absentee by mail

Residents who choose to submit an absentee ballot by mail must first apply. The quickest way to submit an application is online at vote.elections.virginia.gov.

Once you receive your absentee ballot, return the completed ballot to the Voter Registration Office no later than 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

What's on the ballot

All 100 seats in the Virginia House of Delegates and all 40 Virginia Senate seats are up for grabs in 2019. In Arlington County, that includes the following races (note: you will only have one senator and one delegate to vote on depending on where in Arlington you live):

Candidate

Senate of Virginia, 30th District
Adam P. Ebbin (D), incumbent

Senate of Virginia, 31st District
Barbara A. Favola (D), incumbent

Senate of Virginia, 32nd District
Janet D. Howell (D), incumbent

Arthur G. Purves (R)

House of Delegates, 45th District
Mark H. Levine (D), incumbent

House of Delegates, 47th District
Patrick A. Hope (D), incumbent

House of Delegates, 48th District
Richard C. “Rip” Sullivan, Jr (D), incumbent

House of Delegates, 49th District
Alfonso H. Lopez (D), incumbent
Terry Modglin (I)

Commonwealth’s Attorney
Parisa Dehghani-Tafti (D)

Sheriff
Elizabeth F. “Beth” Arthur (D), incumbent

Commissioner of Revenue
Ingrid H. Morroy (D), incumbent

Treasurer
Carla F. de la Pava (D), incumbent

County Board (two seats)
Kate A. “Katie” Cristol (D), incumbent
Christian E. Dorsey (D), incumbent
Audrey R. Clement (I)
Arron O’Dell (I)

School Board
Reid S. Goldstein (I)

Control of the Virginia House of Delegates and Senate hangs in the balance. Republicans have a 21-19 majority in the Senate and 51-49 majority in the House. During 2017 elections, Democrats gained 15 seats in the House.

Other things to know before Election Day

• Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 5.
• An acceptable form of photo identification is required to cast a ballot at your polling place.

Additional reporting by Megan VerHelst/Patch