Ballots are devices (originally balls) used to cast votes in elections. Today, the word “ballot” has several senses and may alternatively be used to refer to:
- A method or process of casting a vote;
- The actual paper, card, or digital screen used to indicate a voter’s choices;
- The total number of votes cast in an election; and
- A list of candidates running for office.
In the United States, voters have typically used printed ballots that they alter in some way to indicate their vote. For example, a printed ballot might require voters to mark an empty box, fill in a bubble, or physically punch a hole in the ballot. Printed punch-hole ballots were partly responsible for the crisis that arose from the 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore. In that instance, many votes in Florida were infamously considered invalid because the ballots had “hanging chads” (i.e., the punched-out piece of paper, called a “chad,” did not fully detach from the ballot). The question of who won that election was not fully settled until the Supreme Court issued its controversial per curiam opinion in the case of Bush v. Gore, 531 U.S. 98 (2000); (for the Wex entry about the case, see Bush v. Gore (2000).)
Today, many jurisdictions provide digital screens, which allow people to vote by clicking with a computer mouse, pressing a button beside the screen, or touching the screen to select the name of the candidate to indicate their choice, though many of these systems still create paper hard copies of ballots to ensure that votes can be verified. Additionally, some voters who are unable to reach their designated polling place on election day may vote by mail using paper absentee ballots, provided their circumstances meet certain requirements. For a more comprehensive list of ballot types, see About Voting Equipment at verifiedvoting.org.
The Americans with Disabilities Act, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act of 1984, and The Help America Vote Act of 2002 together require jurisdictions to make accessible accommodations for people with disabilities or language barriers. For example, a braille ballot may be provided for a voter who is blind.
If you are eligible to vote in the United States, you can register to vote online at vote.gov, you can check your voter registration status and find your polling place at vote.org/polling-place-locator, and you can request an absentee ballot (if eligible) at nass.org/can-i-vote/absentee-early-voting.
[Last updated in September of 2024 by the Wex Definitions Team]