Voting in New Hampshire
Who Is Eligible to Vote in New Hampshire?
Here are the ONLY requirements to vote in New Hampshire:
You must be a US citizen
You must be 18 years or older on or before Election day
New Hampshire is your home
How Do I Vote
If you’re already registered to vote at your current address, just head to your polling place during voting hours on election day and cast your vote!
If you have moved to a new town or to a different city ward or are registering for the first time in New Hampshire, you will need to register to vote.
Registering to Vote
When and Where do I Register to Vote?
You can REGISTER AT YOUR POLLING PLACE ON ELECTION DAY. New Hampshire has same-day voter registration! Note that you must provide a photo ID if you register to vote for the first time in NH on election day.
OR
REGISTER EARLY at your town or city clerk’s office for more voting options.
Registering early makes voting at the polls on election day faster and easier.
Registering to vote makes voting absentee easy. You will have the option to vote absentee if you can’t make it the polls on election day. See below for details on who is eligible to vote absentee in New Hampshire.
Find your clerk’s office info and hours here. You can also register at your town’s Supervisors of the Checklist meetings, or at occasionally held voter registration events held by your local election officials at universities, high schools, nursing homes, or town offices.
Do I Need Documentation to Register to Vote?
To be eligible to vote in New Hampshire, you need to prove your identity, age, citizenship and domicile (physical address).
If you are registering to vote at the polls for the first time in NH, you now need a valid photo ID for your vote to count.
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What Do I Need?
You must provide a photo ID issued by any state, the federal government, or a New Hampshire high school, college, or trade school.
Examples include:
A driver’s license or non-driver ID from any state
A U.S. passport or passport card
A military ID
A New Hampshire school ID
A Voter ID card (available for free at the DMV with a voucher from your town or city clerk or the Secretary of State’s office)
Your ID may be expired, as long as the expiration or issuance date is within the last 5 years. If you are 65 or older, the expiration date does not matter.
What If I Don’t Have an ID?
If you do not have an acceptable form of photo ID, you will not be able to vote. However, you can contact your town or city clerk to obtain a voucher for a free Voter ID, which can be redeemed at a NH DMV location.
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Your photo ID will prove your age if it includes your date of birth.
If your photo ID does not list your date of birth, you can use an official document such as:
A birth certificate
A U.S. passport or passport card
A naturalization certificate
Affidavits are no longer accepted as proof of age. You must provide documentation to register and vote.
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To prove U.S. citizenship, you must provide one of the following official documents:
U.S. birth certificate
U.S. passport or passport card
Naturalization certificate
Other official documentation that establishes U.S. citizenship
If you have legally changed your name and your proof of citizenship does not have the name you are registering to vote under, you must provide additional documentation that shows your name has changed from what is listed on your citizenship document.
For the most up-to-date information on accepted documents, please refer to the New Hampshire Secretary of State’s Official Guidance.
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Your domicile (physical address) can be proven with printed or digital documents. If you have one of the following documents, you must bring it to register:
A New Hampshire ID with your current address (drivers license, non-drivers ID, or voter ID card issued by the DMV)
A New Hampshire car registration
Photo identification issued by the U.S. government that contains your address
A government issued check, benefit statement, or tax document
If you do not possess the required documents, you must sign an attestation under penalty of voting fraud and provide other reasonable documentation proving your domicile. Election officials will provide an attestation form if needed. Other documents include:
Mail sent to you at your domicile (not a P.O. box)
A utility bill with your name and address
Documentation from your school showing your dorm or off-campus address
A rental agreement, lease, deed, or property tax bill
A letter from a homeless shelter or service provider
For more details on proving domicile, visit the New Hampshire Secretary of State’s Official Guidance.
Absentee Voting
Absentee Voting Eligibility
Absentee voting in New Hampshire is permitted for voter who can’t make it to the polls on election day for one of the following reasons:
You need to be at work,
You will be away on Election Day,
You are responsible for childcare or caring for an infirm adult,
You have a disability or illness, or
You are observing a religious commitment on Election Day
Voting Absentee in person at your local clerk’s office
You can vote absentee in person at your local clerk’s office up to the day before Election Day. You can go to their clerk’s office, request your absentee ballot, fill it out, and return it–all on one visit.
Voting Absentee by mail: step by step
STEP 1
STEP 2
STEP 3
STEP 4
Request an absentee ballot. Click here to download an absentee request application (fillable form). To check your voter registration status, click here.
Fill out, sign and return the application to your town clerk. Return it to your clerk’s office by mail, email, fax, or in person. Absentee ballots start mailing about 30 days before the election, and tend to arrive a few days after you submit your application.
Fill out your absentee ballot & sign the envelope. You can expect your absentee ballot a few days after you send in your application. Make sure to follow the instructions and don’t forget to sign the inner envelope.
Return your absentee ballot to your town clerk either by mail or in person to arrive before election day. Close to the election? Drop your ballot off in person if you can. You can track your ballot here.
FAQs
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You can vote in NH as long as you are a US citizen, will be 18 or older on or before Election day, and are domiciled in New Hampshire. The law makes it very clear: “a student of any institution of learning may lawfully claim domicile for voting purposes in the New Hampshire town or city in which he or she lives while attending such institution of learning if such student’s claim of domicile otherwise meets the requirements.” RSA 654:1, I-a.
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If you established your civic home in New Hampshire but are someplace else temporarily, you remain domiciled here unless and until you make a new place your domicile (home). Just because you might move in the future does not prevent you from voting here.
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No. You do NOT need a driver’s license or car registration to vote in New Hampshire. Your license status has no effect on your right to vote.
However, all voters must present a valid photo ID when checking in to vote. If you are a first-time voter registering on Election Day, in addition to a photo ID you must also provide proof of your age, domicile, and citizenship.
If you do not have a photo ID, you can request a voucher from your town or city clerk and redeem it at a NH DMV location to obtain a free Voter ID.
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If you don’t have an acceptable photo ID or other documents, take these steps as soon as possible:
Reach out to your town or city clerk and ask for assistance in identifying if you have documents that can prove your qualifications.
Obtain a free Voter ID: You can get a non-driver’s ID at the DMV for voting purposes. This normally costs $10, but it will be free if you first get a signed voucher from your town or city clerk’s office.
Reach out to us.
Note: You must have a valid photo ID to check in and vote on Election Day. If you do not have one, be sure to secure a free Voter ID before Election Day.
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Yes, but only specific people. A member of your immediate family or another “delivery agent” may drop off your absentee ballot for you. They may deliver it to your clerk’s office before election day or bring it directly to your polling place before 5pm on election day.
“Delivery agents” include:
The voter’s spouse, parent, sibling, child, grandchild, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, stepparent or stepchild;
Nursing home administrator or a nursing home staff member designated in writing by the administrator to deliver ballots;
Residential care facility administrator, or residential care facility staff member designated in writing by the administrator to deliver ballots;
A person* assisting a blind voter a voter with a disability who has signed a statement on the affidavit envelope acknowledging assistance. (*This person cannot deliver more than 4 absentee ballots.)
Your delivery agent will be asked to complete a return form and show photo identification in order to deliver your ballot. See NH RSA 657:17.
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Yes. Unless you are currently incarcerated for a felony conviction you can vote. People on probation or parole can vote just like anyone else. Misdemeanor convictions don’t prevent you from voting.
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Yes. So long as you are a US Citizen, 18 years old, and live in NH, you can vote. Your voting address (“domicile”) can be any place where you lay your head at night. It can be a parking lot, shelter, a friend’s house, park or bridge.
You can provide a letter from a homeless shelter or a written statement from a friend with whom you are temporarily residing to show domicile. RSA 654:12 I(c)(1)(B). You can also sign an affidavit to prove your domicile and vote like anyone else. Note that if you are registering in New Hampshire for the first time on election day, you need some form of photo ID.
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If you have moved to a new town or a different city ward, you need to re-register to vote at the address where you currently live. Check your voter registration here.
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You will be able to become unaffiliated with a party and register as undeclared after the primary. Some clerks are sending out "return to undeclared" cards with your ballot. If you vote in person, you can fill out the "return to undeclared" card at your polling place after you cast your ballot.
Otherwise, you can always complete a party change form at your clerk’s office or at a Supervisors of the Checklist meeting after the primary.
Proof of Identify
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No. All voters must present a valid photo ID to check in and vote on Election Day.
If you do not have a photo ID, you can obtain a free Voter ID before Election Day by:
Requesting a voucher from your town or city clerk or the Secretary of State’s office.
Redeeming the voucher at a New Hampshire DMV to receive a free Voter ID.
For more information on obtaining a free Voter ID, visit the New Hampshire Secretary of State’s Official Guidance.
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Yes. All photo IDs issued by accredited colleges, high schools or career schools in New Hampshire are accepted. Note: The ID must list an expiration date, and can’t be more than 5 years expired.
Full lists of NH-accredited schools are here: colleges, career schools, high schools (public and non-public)
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You can get a *free* non-driver’s ID at New Hampshire DMV, but you must act quickly. Make an appointment now. If you need help, call the Secretary of State’s office.
*Non-driver’s IDs cost $10, but are free if you get a signed voucher from your clerk’s office or from the Secretary of State’s office.
Notes and Sources:
"Home" Definition: The law uses the word ‘domicile,’ but “[t]he fundamental idea of domicile is home.” The State of New Hampshire Guide to Registering to Vote (July, 2022), quoting Felker v. Henderson, 78 N.H. 509, 511 (1917). You are domiciled where you choose to lay your head at night and where you choose to be part of the community. “An inhabitant's domicile for voting purposes is that one place where a person, more than any other place, has established a physical presence and manifests an intent to maintain a single continuous presence for domestic, social, and civil purposes relevant to participating in democratic self government. RSA 654:1, I.
Registering Early: Register before your town's last supervisors of the checklist meeting, held 6-13 days before the election.
"Illness" here applies to: 1) voters with symptoms of a communicable disease or illness; 2) voters who, due to their own health circumstances, limit public exposure in their day-to-day life as a preventative measure. 3) other voters if, based on their own health circumstances, medical authorities advise them to avoid going out in public
Multilingual election info (SOS)
NHSOS July 2022 registration guide
NH SOS & DOJ 418 Guidance
NHSOS Absentee Guidance (July, 2022)
NHSOS New American voting guide
NHSOS Clerk info
NHSOS Polling Place lookup
Free non-driver ID, RSA 260:21 (V).