Day: July 14, 2026💾

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Thematic Map: Troy vs Manhattan - A Size Comparison

Provisional ballots | MIT Election Lab

Provisional ballots | MIT Election Lab

Since the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) became law in 2002, all states have been required to use provisional ballots.  The only exception is states that offered same-day registration when the National Voter Registration Act was enacted in 1993, and even most of these states have found them useful in certain situations.

In its most basic form, a provisional ballot works like this: A voter whose name doesn’t appear on the voter registration list at a precinct polling place on Election Day—but who believes she or he is, in fact, registered—may be offered a provisional ballot. After being marked, it's placed in a special secrecy envelope rather than in the ballot box. After the polls close, the registration status of the voter is determined. If the voter was in fact registered in that precinct on Election Day, the ballot is removed from the secrecy envelope and counted just like any other ballot. If the voter wasn’t registered, the ballot remains in the secrecy envelope and is not counted.

Thematic Map: Percent of Employment as Fast Food Workers