Any person, regardless disability status, has the right to register to vote at any office or agency that provides such a service. These offices include but are not limited to: Department of Health (VDH), Department of Social Services (DSS), Department of Mental Health (DMHRSAR), Department for Rehabilitation Services (DRS), Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (VDDHH), and the Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired (DBVI).
Your local registrar’s office also has registration forms and should be able to accommodate any special needs. In addition, you can download a voter registration form from the state board of elections website.
- Curbside voting is available for people ages 65 and older, or any person with a disability or injury; all jurisdictions use paper ballots. An area for voting outside of the polling place will be clearly marked and with instructions prominently displayed on how the voter is to notify an officer of election of their request to vote outside of the polling place. The necessary materials will then be brought to you in your vehicle. You shall be afforded every opportunity to vote in a private and independent fashion.
- You have the right to have an election officer or other person help you vote if you are physically disabled, unable to read or unable to write. Blind voters may also have any person assist them.
- Voters with a visual impairment or print disability may electronically receive and mark an absentee ballot using a screen-assisted ballot making tool provided by the Department of Elections. These voters are still required to return physical copies of their ballots. General registrars are required to provide the voter with appropriate envelopes for the return of the ballot. One envelope will have to have a tactile marking that allows the voter to identify which envelope is the outer envelope when returning their ballot.
- You may have anyone who is not your employer or union representative assist you. The officer of election or other person so designated who helps you prepare your ballot shall do so in accordance with your instructions, without soliciting your vote or in any manner attempting to influence your vote, and shall not in any manner divulge or indicate, by signs or otherwise, how you voted on any office or question. For individuals with vision impairments the state board of elections works to provide large print copies of all voting related material. Your local registrar’s office should have large print versions of all materials in circulation at this time.
- In accordance with the Help America Vote Act, Virginia is in the process of making all of its polling places fully accessible to elderly voters and voters with disabilities. If you find that your polling place is not accessible for any reason please fill out the voter accessibility feedback form. The state board of elections is dedicated to providing the best voting experience possible, and will value your input and will keep any remarks confidential.
- In accordance with the Help America Vote Act, every polling location in Virginia must be equipped with at least one accessible voting system that will allow all voters with a disability to vote in the same private and independent manner as a voter without a disability. If you require voting assistance due to a physical disability or inability to read or write, you can receive it upon request. Any of the election officers can advise you of your rights in this area. If you have cognitive disabilities, due to any reason, you can be eligible to vote if you are not currently ruled to be mentally incompetent by a court of law.
For more information, you can utilize the American Association of People With Disabilities (AAPD) resource.
