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Voting in the Commonwealth: A Guide to the 2024 Election in Kentucky

Voting in the Commonwealth: A Guide to the 2024 Election in Kentucky

Voting in the 2024 Elections

The deadline to register to vote in Kentucky is October 7, 2024 by 4:00 p.m. local time.  

Register to vote online: Kentucky Online Voter Registration

You are eligible to vote in Kentucky if you meet the following requirements: 

  • Be a U.S. citizen and a Kentucky resident for at least 28 days before the election
  • Be at least 18 years old by the next General Election
  • Not be a convicted felon, or else have had your civil rights restored
  • Not have been adjudged mentally incompetent and had voting rights removed
  • Not claim the right to vote outside Kentucky

If you don't meet these requirements, learn how to register in your home state here: Register to Vote in Other States

If you're not sure if you're registered, you can confirm your Registration Status in Kentucky here or nationwide here.

Sample Ballots

You can find links to your county's sample ballots at https://web.sos.ky.gov/electionballots/. 

 

Absentee Voting

Voters with a qualifying excuse for being unable to vote on Election Day (includes being absent from the county on Election day, illness, and disability) can vote in person early or by mail. Students who temporarily live outside of their home county may vote absentee. 

To vote by mail, request an absentee ballot starting September 21. The deadline to request an mail-in absentee ballot is October 22.You must have a qualifying excuse to vote by mail. Mail-in ballots must be received by 6:00 pm local time on Election Day, November 5. 

In-person, excused absentee voting will be available on the following days: October 23, 24, 25, 28, 29, and 30. Find polling locations and hours here.

  • In Fayette County, you can vote absentee with a qualifying excuse on October 23, 24, 25, 28, 29, and 30 at the Fayette County Clerk's Office, 162 E Main St, between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.  

Early Voting

Voters who have not requested a mail-in absentee ballot may vote early in person for any reason on the following days: Thursday, October 31, Friday, November 1, and Saturday, November 2. Find your polling locations and hours here. 

In Fayette County, you can vote early at the following locations from 8:30 to 4:30.

Election Day (November 5)

On Election Day, you can vote at your local precinct polling place.

In Fayette County, you can vote at your local precinct or at one of the six public libraries listed above. This is new for 2024!  

Voter ID: In Kentucky, all voters must produce identification at the polling place. More information on the types of identification that can be provided can be found at the following link: SB 2 FAQ.pdf. Your University of Kentucky student identification card is a valid form of identification for voting.

There are two constitutional amendments on the ballot in 2024. You can find the text of both measures on the Secretary of State's website: https://www.sos.ky.gov/elections/Pages/2024-Constitutional-Amendments.aspx. 

School Funding:

Constitutional Amendment 2 (HB 2) would allow public tax dollars to be used for schools outside of the current public school system. If passed, it would add language to the Constitution saying that "the General Assembly may provide financial support for the education of students outside the system of common schools." In the Kentucky Constitution, K-12 public schools are referred to as common schools.

Passage of the measure would allow the legislature to provide funding to private and charter schools. It does not specify the form this funding could take, but it would allow lawmakers to provide direct funding of charter schools, school vouchers, and scholarship tax credits in future legislation. Currently, Kentucky’s Constitution requires the General Assembly to “provide for an efficient system of common schools throughout the State,” and in recent years, courts have struck down measures to use public funding for charter schools and to provide tax credits to cover expenses for private schools, arguing that neither were “common schools.”

Supporters of the measure argue that "school choice" is not an attack on public schools, but instead about providing alternatives to parents and their children. 

Opponents argue that it would allow lawmakers to siphon money from the state's existing public schools to pay for private education. They note that many counties have no private school options, and that any future school voucher programs would send public funding to families who were already paying for private school. 

 

Voting:

Constitutional Amendment 1 (SB 143) would prohibit non-citizens from voting in Kentucky elections. If passed, the constitution would be changed to say that "no person who is not a citizen of the United States shall be allowed to vote" in Kentucky's elections.

Under current law, only U.S. citizens who have lived in Kentucky for at least 28 days before Election Day are permitted to vote, and according to state election officials, there is no evidence showing that non-citizens are currently voting in the state. However, supporters of the amendment want to proactively prevent cities from allowing non-citizens to vote in local races such as school boards in the future. 

 

Before submitting your ballot, use the non-partisan resources below to learn about the candidates running for office and the measures on the ballot. For each website, enter your address or select "Kentucky" to get relevant information for the Commonwealth. 

Candidate Information