Early voting

Early voting (also called pre-poll voting or advance polling) is a process by which voters in a public election can vote prior to the scheduled election day. Early voting can take place remotely, such as via postal voting, or in person, usually in designated early voting polling stations. The availability and time periods for early voting vary among jurisdictions and types of election. The goals of early voting are usually to increase voter participation and relieve congestion at polling stations on election day.

The categories of people who vote early include those who will be out of the polling area during the election period, poll workers, campaign workers, people with medical procedures scheduled for that time, and adherents to religious commitments, among others.

The numbers of voters who vote early has increased in recent years. As unconditional (no excuse) early voting has gained ground, some critics have condemned the process as damaging to the democratic process.

In Australia, early voting is known as pre-poll voting. However, to cast an early vote a voter must already be registered.

In Canada, early voting is known as advance polling. It is offered to all voters in all federal, provincial, and most municipal elections. In federal elections, voters do not need to be registered in order to vote at an advance poll, provided they are either carrying proof of identity and address, or bring a registered voter who will swear an oath of identification at the polling station on their behalf.

Finland and Sweden have similar early voting systems.

Based on the addresses of the obligatory resident registration for all citizens, all eligible voters in Germany receive automatically a wahlbenachrichtigung (notification of election which contains a postal vote application form) because. The notification is sent at least three weeks before an election to the Bundestag. It is possible to cast one's vote directly at the municipal government office that handles the application. Only voters with residence abroad must register by own acting.

The requirement for an excuse has been removed in 2008, but it was just an abstract assurance before that never has been validated. 19% of all voters voted early in 2005.

Rules for the elections in the states, counties, and municipalities of Germany are very similar. Germans living abroad may register and vote via mail for Bundestag elections and European Parliament elections, but not for state and local elections.

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