Voter ID Requirements

General ID Requirements

Virginia voters are reminded that under law passed by the 2000 General Assembly, they are now required to provide identification (ID) at the polls, or sign an Affirmation of Identification at the polls, in order to vote at the polls.  The 2002 General Assembly extended the ID requirement to absentee voters who vote in person.

Acceptable forms of identification include the following:       Virginia voter identification card       Valid Virginia driver's license                                     Military ID       Any Federal, state or local government-issued ID       Employer issued photo ID card       Social Security card

Any voter who forgets to bring acceptable ID to the polls may still vote but will be requested to sign, under oath, an Affirmation of Identity form affirming that he/she is the voter he/she claims to be.  A voter who requires assistance to vote by reason of physical disability or an inability to read or write may, if he so requests, also be assisted in completing this statement.

New ID Requirements for Certain Voters 

Persons who registered to vote in Virginia by mailing their registration applications on or after January 1, 2003 are required to show identification (ID) when voting for the first time in a federal election if they did not send a copy of one of these IDs with their voter registration applications.  Any of the following types of ID are acceptable: 

     A current and valid photo ID (for example a driver’s license);

      a current utility bill, bank statement, government check or paycheck that shows name and address;

      another government document that shows name and address (for example a voter card).

If the voter does not present one of these forms of ID at the polls, that person can still vote, but must cast a conditional ballot.  This is a paper ballot that the local electoral board counts the day after the election, after it verifies the person was qualified to vote in that precinct.   

When the person votes in other elections after his or her first federal election, the regular Virginia ID requirement will apply, as it does to all other voters.