Absentee Voting

The Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP) provides American citizens with the opportunity to vote in U.S. elections while they are outside of the United States.

To vote in U.S. Elections, American Citizens must register and request an absentee ballot from the state in which they hold residence or last resided. If you have never resided in the United States, you may request to register and vote in the last state where your parents or grandparents resided before your birth. However, these policies differ from state to state; a comprehensive list of the policies by state can be found at http://www.fvap.gov/reference/nvr-res.html.

The official U.S. Government website for overseas absentee voting assistance is the Federal Voting Assistance Program (http://www.fvap.gov/). It has a wealth of information about absentee voting including the downloadable absentee ballot application, state-specific instructions for completing the form, links to state and local officials, and a downloadable emergency ballot. There is also an international toll-free number you can call from Portugal, 8008-12543.

To register to vote and to request an absentee ballot, download the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) (PDF - 907kb). Fill it out and send it in, following the guidelines for your state. Here is a postage paid envelope template (PDF - 95kb), which is valid if you are using the U.S. postal system.

Each state has different voting procedures. Please find here information about your state’s procedures.

To check the status of your voter registration, contact your State or Local Election Office. The Federal Voting Assistance Program website has a listing of all the State Election Offices’ websites.

You can also submit your completed ballot request and voter registration to the Consulate: U.S. Consulate, Avenida Princípe de Mónaco, 6-2 F ; for forwarding through the United States mail system. Address an outer envelope to the Embassy with Portuguese postage sufficient for delivery to Lisbon. Inside the outer envelope, include another envelope using the postage paid template (PDF - 95kb)and address it to the local voting office. The inner-envelope should secure your confidential registration and ballot.

Should you need any assistance you may call the American Citizen Services Unit at the Consulate at 296 282 210 from 8:30 am – 5:30pm or email the ACS unit at VotePontaDelgada@State.gov.