absentee ballot

noun

: a ballot submitted (as by mail) in advance of an election by a voter who is unable to be present at the polls

Examples of absentee ballot in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

And the conservative Heritage Foundation database shows only 387 instances of fraudulent use of absentee ballots across every election recorded since 1982. — Peter Charalambous, ABC News, 26 July 2026

In the 1997 Miami mayoral race vote fraud scandal, for example, after several hundred absentee ballots were proved fraudulent, courts invalidated them all; still, only about 57 individuals were charged. — Andrew E. Busch, The Conversation, 23 July 2026

Immediately after the 2020 election, the secretary of state’s office did a hand recount, a machine recount of all Georgia ballots, and a signature verification on absentee ballots. — Hanna Rosin, The Atlantic, 16 July 2026

On March 31, ahead of this year’s midterm election — in which the balance of Congress is in play — the president issued an executive order that could change how mail-in or absentee ballots work. — Mark Pazniokas, Hartford Courant, 9 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1889, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for absentee ballot

• alate
• fallot
• mallet
• palate
• palette
• pallet
• shallot

Legal Definition

absentee ballot

noun

absentee bal·​lot

: a ballot submitted (as by mail) in advance of an election by a voter who is unable to be present at the polls