Why does Alabama not have early voting?

MONTGOMERY, Ala. ( WIAT) — Some believe absentee voting is the same as early voting, but one advocate wants to clear up misunderstandings ahead of Election Day.

Kathy Jones, president of the League of Women Voters, said absentee voters have to mark an excuse, get witnesses and sign an affidavit. These actions are simplified with early voting, she says.

“With early voting, you would actually go in, fill your ballot out, stick it into the tabulator, and it would be counted, just like you would on Election Day,” said Jones. “Because it is voting.”

Jones said if absentee voters fill out the affidavit wrong, their vote won’t be counted.

“It’s all about whether or not you want to open it up to get more people voting,” she said. “And we need everybody to have an opportunity to vote.”

Rep. Mack Butler (R-Gadsden) said you want to get people to the polls, but not too early.

“Some states are doing like a month and a half early voting. A lot happens. You know, you always talk about the ‘October Surprise’ and information comes out,” explained Butler. “So one of the arguments is you might have an ill-informed voter because the campaign put out so much information at the very end.”

Butler said ultimately, he’d be open to bringing early voting to the state.

“I’m a representative of the people and I work for the people. This has not been a big push in my district, but I would be open to this if this is something that the people do want,” Butler said.

While Alabama doesn’t have early voting, the deadline to apply for an absentee ballot is Oct. 29. You can print it out and find where to mail it by going to alabamavotes.gov. Jones said they are urging lawmakers to take action and bring early voting to the state during the 2025 Legislative Session.

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