Getting a replacement ballot in Washington state for the November 2024 election
If you haven’t received your ballot (or you got it, but lost it or spilled something on it; or if you put it in a ballot box that’s been targeted by vandals)you can get a replacement three ways:
- pick it up in person at your county’s election office or a voting center.
- get it mailed to you — although there’s not a lot of time left before the election, so this isn’t a great choice at this point if you have other options.
- print it out
The Secretary of State has contact information and links to the websites for all the county election offices. If you don’t have a printer or don’t want to deal the onine system (or if you try to and run into problems) call your county election office, or just drop by an election office or voting center.
If you do want to print your own ballot, it’s best to start at VoteWA.gov, a one-stop shop that works for any county in Washington, to check your ballot status and request a replacement. VoteWA then sends you to your county elections site to actually print the ballot, so you’ll have to log in multiple times, but otherwise the whole process is failry straightforward.
There are four steps to pringint out a ballot
- Verify that you’re registered
- Request a ballot on VoteWA.gov
- Download the ballot from your county election site
- Printing and returning the ballot
Verify that you’re registered
When you visit https://VoteWA.gov, you fill in your first name, last name, and date of birth. Then click the Submit button. If the system finds your information, you should see your name, address, and the day your ballot was mailed to you.
If the system doesn’t find you, double-check your information. Your name and middle initial need to be exactly as it appears on your driver’s license, state ID card, or voter registration; and your birthdate needs to be in month/day/year format.
If the system still doesn’t find you, or your status is inactive, you’ll need to register. October 28 is the last day you can register online at VoteWA; after that, you’ll need to register in-person at an election office or voting center.
Requesting the ballot
Once you log in, there’s a menu item at the top of the page that lets you choose a language. This artcile will include English-language screenshots, but you can also choose Español (Spanish), Chinese, Vietnamese, Somali, Russian or Korean.
To start with, click on Your Ballot & Voting Materials. That will take you to a new page, where you can track your ballot’s status. It will probably show that it’s been mailed but not received yet.
Scroll down, and click on Get a replacement ballot.
This will take you to a page that gives you three different ways to request a replacement ballot:
- Get a Replacement Ballot by Mail. There’s not a lot of time left before the election, so this might not be the best choice.
- Print a Replacement Ballot.
- Pick Up a New Ballot In Person
IMPORTANT: Printing or requesting a replacement will automatically cancel the previous ballot if you’ve sent one in.
To print, click on Print a replacement ballot
On the next page, click on Download Replacement Ballot Packet.
What happens next may depend on what county you’re in. In King County (and I think this is true for most other counties in Washington State), you have to go to the county voter information site. So once I clicked on the Download Replacement Ballot Packet button, it popped up a message with a link that I could click on.
Printing out your ballot on your county election site
Downloading your ballot on your county election site
Every county has their own voter information software so there may be slight differences. Here’s what it looks like in King County.
To start with, fill in your first name, last name, date of birth, and house or apartment number. Then click the Submit button. If the system finds your information, you should see your name, address, and the day your ballot was mailed to you.
If the system doesn’t find you, double-check your information. Your name and needs to be exactly as it appears on your driver’s license, state ID card, or voter registration; and your birthdate needs to be in month/day/year format.
If the system still doesn’t find you, or your status is inactive, you’ll need to register. October 28 is the last day you can register online at VoteWA; after that, you’ll need to register in-person at an election office or voting center.
If you are registered, you’ll see your voting information for the current election — including the date your ballot was mailed. Below that, there are three options for how to request a replacement ballot: online, by mail, or in person. There’s not a lot of time left before the election, so “by mail” isn’t a great choice at this point if you have other options.
To print out a new version , click on Online: you can mark and print your ballot online.
Once you do that, it takes you to a page that allows you to print out a new ballot, or to submit a signature resolution form in case there’s a problem later on. Click on Mark and Print your Ballot.
Once you do that, you have to provide your name and birth date again, and click on Continue. This takes you to a page where you specify whether or not you’re an Overseas or Service Voter. If (like me) you’re just a regular Washington state voter, not overseas or in the armed services, click on No, and then Continue.
This takes you to a page where you have the option to mark your ballot online, or print out a blank ballot and fill it out by hand.
- To print it out, without marking it online, click on the link saying click here to print and mark your ballot.
- Or, you can fill it out, and then click Continue. This will take you to a page where you can review and change your selections. Once you’re satisfied with your choices, click Continue again.
Either of these options winds up taking you to the Ballot Return Package page. Click the big Download Ballot Packet button.
Printing and returning the ballot
Once you click on the Download Ballot Packet button, your browser will download a PDF file that you can print. When you print the ballot out, you will get
- Ballot Packet Instructions. This page does not need to be returned
- Declaration and Signature Sheet. Make sure to sign and date this!
- Optional Cover Sheet. You can put this between the declaration and signature sheet to get additional privacy.
- Envelope Cut-Out Sheet.
- Your ballot, which will be two pages long.
Double-check your ballot to make sure it has four statewide initiatives and candidates for Senate and Congress, state legislators, state Supreme Court justice (as well as any local initiatives or judicial elections your county has). If the pages of your ballot are cut off at the bottom, you will need to print them again selecting the “scale to fit” option.
Next, cut out the envelope image and tape it onto an envelope. Make sure to sign and date your completed declaration and signature sheet! Now fold the optional cover sheet, and ballot, put it in the envelope, and seal it.
There are two ways you can return your ballot:
- Official ballot drop boxes and in-person voting centers are open until 8 p.m on November 5. You can find the locations of nearby drop boxes and voting centers on VoteWA.gov — or on your county election site.
- If you’re mailing in your ballot, it has to be postmarked by November 5, but earlier is better. You do not need to attach a stamp — postage is prepaid!
Whichever way you choose, it’s best to vote early!
If you run into problems, call your county election office.
