Safety and Voting

If you are not registered to vote and are afraid to register because you do not want your abuser to find you, you can still exercise your right to vote.

You can register to vote by mail or online and you can ask to have your voter registration information confidential if: 

• You are a victim of domestic violence who was physically or emotionally injured, or there was a substantial risk of injury, and the person who hurt you was a family or household member.
• You are a victim of a sexual crime. 

How to keep your registration confidential:

1. Prepare and sign a written statement saying that:
   1. You are a victim of domestic violence or a a victim of a sexual crime, and
   2. Because of the threat of physical or emotional harm to you, your family, or household members, you want to keep your registration record confidential.
2. Take or mail this statement to your County Board of Elections.
3. Complete your voter registration, and then confirm with the Board that they will keep your voter registration record confidential and not available to the public.

Your processed application lasts for four years. After it expires, you may re-apply.