Important deadlines for the 2020 Presidential Primary Election are approaching. The deadline to register to vote, change party affiliation, update an address, and request a polling place reassignment is 5 p.m. Tuesday, April 7, 2020.
To vote in the upcoming presidential primary election, Maryland residents who are eligible to vote but are not yet registered – including 17-year-olds who will be 18 years old on or before the Nov. 3 Presidential General Election– should register by 5 p.m. Tuesday, April 7, 2020. This is also the last day for registered voters to change their party affiliation.
St. Mary’s residents with a Maryland driver’s license or MVA-issued ID may register to vote, change their address, or change their party affiliation online at voterservices.elections.maryland.gov/OnlineVoterRegistration
Voters and members of the military, their spouses and dependents who are overseas and who do not have a Maryland driver’s license or MVA-issued ID, may also register or change their address or party affiliation online using different identifying information.
Paper voter registration applications must be hand-delivered or mailed to the St. Mary’s board of elections. A hand-delivered application must be received by the St. Mary’s board of elections by 5 p.m. April 7, 2020, and a mailed application must be postmarked by April 7, 2020. Voters who want to update their address can do so at their local early voting center during the early voting period from April 16 through April 23.
Voter registration applications are available throughout Maryland at the following locations:
- Local boards of elections
- Motor Vehicle Administration offices
- State Department of Health offices
- Local Department of Social Services offices
- Offices on Aging
- Division of Rehabilitation Services
- Recruitment offices of the U.S. Armed Forces
- Public institutions of higher education
- Marriage license bureaus
- Post offices
- Public libraries
- State Board of Elections
- The MTA Paratransit Certification Office
You may also call 1-800-222-8683 to request an application by mail or download and print a voter registration application at: elections.maryland.gov/voter_registration/application.html
Most of Maryland’s polling places are accessible to voters with disabilities. An elderly voter or a voter with a disability who is assigned to an inaccessible polling place may ask to be reassigned to an accessible polling place. This request must be submitted in writing by 5 p.m. Tuesday, April 7, 2020. The request form is available online at elections.maryland.gov/pdf/Request_for_Accessible_Polling_Place.pdf
Voters can also call 1-800-222-8683 to request a form by mail. On receipt of a timely request, the St. Mary’s board of elections will review the request and determine whether there is an accessible polling place with the same ballot as the voter’s home precinct and notify the voter of the status of the request.
To verify voter registration status or to find out if an assigned polling place is accessible, voters may visit: voterservices.elections.maryland.gov/VoterSearch.
The 2020 Presidential Primary Election will be held Tuesday, April 28, 2020. Voters may vote by absentee ballot, visit their local early voting center during early voting, which takes place April 16 through April 23, or they can go to their polling place on Election Day.
Individuals who miss the April 7 deadline to register will have the opportunity to register to vote at an early voting center during early voting or at their polling place on Election Day. To register to vote on Election Day, individuals need to go to their assigned polling place where they live and bring a document that proves where they live. This can be an MVA-issued license, ID card or change of address card, paycheck, bank statement, utility bill, or other government document that includes the voter’s name and address.
Voters can find their polling place online at: voterservices.elections.maryland.gov/PollingPlaceSearch
For more information, voters may contact the St. Mary’s Board of Election at 301-475-4200, ext. 71620 or the State Board of Elections at 1-800-222-VOTE (8683) or visit elections.maryland.gov.
