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

After more than a week of counting outstanding, absentee ballots and affidavit — or provisional — ballots, Colom won the closest Senate race in the country by just a few thousand votes. — Elena Moore, NPR, 12 Nov. 2026

On Monday, Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson said about 14,200 provisional ballots had been processed, of which about 80% were accepted, and about 2,700 mail-in absentee ballots had not yet been returned. — Camille Baker, Chicago Tribune, 11 Nov. 2026

Peltola’s campaign filed a lawsuit against Alaska election officials on Friday, seeking immediate access to information about absentee ballots that have been rejected during the extremely close election. — Giulia Carbonaro, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Nov. 2026

The pool of outstanding ballots includes absentee ballots, which can be counted in Mississippi as long as they are received by Tuesday, five business days after the election. — ABC News, 7 Nov. 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