FEDERAL SERVICES VOTING
Overseas voting, or federal services voting, is available for military personnel and their dependents as well as civilians and their dependents living abroad. A voter must meet the criteria established by the federal Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act. Voters voting under the UOCAVA are exempt from Kansas’ photo ID requirements under the SAFE Act. However, it is important to note that overseas absentee voting is not the same as advance voting in Kansas. Registered voters in Kansas who do not qualify under the federal overseas voting rules may apply for an advance ballot in the county where they are registered and will be subject to the ID requirements.
Here are the steps for overseas voting:- Submit a ballot application.
Send it to the county election office where your Kansas residence is. The application is the Federal Post Card Application, or FPCA. You may find your county election office contact information here. Your application remains effective for one calendar year. - Obtain your ballot.
Ballots will be sent out starting 45 days before an election to all voters with an active FPCA on file. You will choose your preferred method of ballot delivery U.S. mail, fax, or email when you complete your application. - Return your ballot.
Return it to the county election office that sent it to you. You have the same options you had in obtaining your ballot-U.S. mail, fax or email. If you plan to return your ballot by email, you can choose to improve the security of that email by signing or encrypting it. See our instructions for more details if you are interested in these options. - Check your status.
You may contact your county election office to find out if your ballot was received and if it counted, and if not, why. You may find your county election officer's contact information here or you may call the Secretary of State's office toll-free at 1-800-262-8683 to be put into contact with your county.
- Kansas voter registration application form. Also en Espanol.
- (You do not have to be registered to vote in Kansas to get an overseas ballot, but we recommend it. If you have a Kansas driver's license you can register online)
- FPCA. This is the PDF version of the Federal Post Card Application to use in applying for a ballot. For the electronic process, click here.
- County election officer contact information. This is contact information for the county election offices in Kansas.
- Voter Assistance Guide. This is the Federal Voting Assistance Program guide to help you through the process.
- FWAB. This is the federal write-in absentee ballot. You can use this if it's close to election day and you don't have time to receive your ballot through the regular means.
- FVAP web site. The Federal Voting Assistance Program is there to help overseas voters.
If you are returning your ballot by email, we offer the following options. The second two require the use of a digital certificate and a certificate-capable email program.
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Send it in a plain email.
This is the default option for emailing ballots. You will simply attach your voted ballot materials to an email and send them to your county election officer for processing. -
Send it in a signed email.
This option adds one layer of security on top of a standard email. It allows the county election officer to determine whether your email was altered after you sent it. -
Send it in an encrypted email.
An encrypted email is similar to a signed email, but adds another layer of security. However, it requires additional steps and time to complete correctly.
See the instructions below for information on returning your ballot using a signed or encrypted email.
| Windows | Mac |
|---|---|
| Getting a certificate | Getting a certificate |
| Sending a signed email | Sending a signed email |
| Sending an encrypted email | Sending an encrypted email |