Elections

Residents may register to vote if they meet the following requirements.

You must be a U. S. citizen and a Kentucky resident for at least 28 days.
You must be 18 years of age by the date of the next general election which is held on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November.
You are eligible to register and vote in the May primary election if you will be 18 before the general election, but not eligible to vote in Special Elections.
You cannot be a convicted felon. If you have been convicted of a felony, you must have your civil rights restored before registering.
You must not have been judged mentally incompetent in a court of law.
You must not claim the right to vote outside the State of Kentucky.
If you meet the above requirements, you may register to vote by completing a voter registration card and submitting it to the County Clerk's Office. You may contact the Clerks' Office and have a card mailed to you or you may download a copy from this web site.

Each voter must designate a party affiliation in order to register to vote. Party designations accepted in Kentucky are: Democrat, Republican or Other. Since Kentucky conducts closed party primaries, you must be registered as a Democrat or Republican to vote in that party's primary election. If you are registered as "Other", you are eligible to vote for only nonpartisan offices (judicial, city commission, school board) in any primary election. You may vote for any candidate in all general elections.

NOTE-You may change your political party affiliation at any time after the May Primary but before December 31st to remain eligible to vote in the following primary election.

Other places where cards or forms are available are:

Circuit Clerk's Office (Drivers Licensing) -When applying for or renewing driver's license will generate cards or applications that update a voter's registration.
KTAP (Kentucky Transitional Assistance Program), Food Stamps, WIC, Medicaid recipients through these agencies.
Armed Forces Recruitment Offices, if you are prospective member of armed forces
High School students may register at school
Federal mail-in registration form
Voter registration or changes must be made no later than 28 days prior to each election.

After your registration is processed, you will receive notification listing your address and the location of your polling place.

Paper Ballots

Voters unable to get to the polls on Election Day are eligible to vote by paper absentee ballot. You must meet one of the following requirements:

Due to advanced age, disability, illness or medical emergency
You are a member of the Armed forces
You are a dependent of a member of the Armed forces
You are a student attending school outside the county of your voter registration
You temporarily reside outside the state but are still eligible to vote in Kentucky
You are incarcerated in jail and have been charged but not convicted of a crime
You may request an application for paper ballot in person, by mail, by phone or by fax.

The application must be completed & mailed to the County Clerk prior to 7 days before the election. Once the Clerk receives the application, the paper ballot will be sent to the voter. Please allow ample time for your ballot to be returned to you & to be mailed back to the clerk to be received by 6 P.M. on Election Day.

Voting by Absentee Machine
If you are going to be out of town on Election Day and you do not qualify for a paper ballot, you may vote on an absentee machine in the County Clerk's office at least 12 days prior to the election. In Mercer County, we open the absentee machine approximately five weeks prior to the election. For more details contact the Mercer County Clerk at (859) 734-6310.

Additional Election Information
 
Links to Election Information below:

STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS
140 Walnut Street
Frankfort, KY 40601
(502) 573-7100
(502) 573-7100 (TTD)
(502) 573-4369 (fax)

REPUBLICAN PARTY OF KENTUCKY
105 West Third Street
Frankfort, KY 40601
(502) 875-5130
(502) 223-5625 (fax)

REGISTRY OF ELECTION FINANCE
140 Walnut Street
Frankfort, KY 40601
(502) 573-2226
(502) 573-5622 (fax)
 
KENTUCKY DEMOCRATIC PARTY
260 Democratic Drive
Frankfort, KY 40601
(502) 695-4828
(502) 695-7629 (fax)
 
SECRETARY OF STATE
700 Capitol Avenue Suite 152
Frankfort, KY 40601
(502) 564-3490
(502) 564-3490 TTY/TTD
(502) 564-4075 (fax)