Kansas elections

Registration closes Tue Oct 13, 2026 (21 days before). Mailed applications must be postmarked on or before Oct 13 (if the postmark is missing or illegible, received by the 9th day before the election). Online registration requires a Kansas driver's license or non-driver ID. Registration is closed the 20 days before the election and on Election Day - no same-day registration.

Local officials may start as early as 2026-10-14.

Request deadline is a received deadline. In-person application allowed until 2026-11-02. Return: postmark counts (postmarked on or before Election Day (Nov 3, 2026) and arriving by the last postal delivery on Friday Nov 6 - required by the statewide temporary injunction in Kansas Appleseed v. Schwab; the Secretary of State's renewed motion to stay the injunction for the general election is pending. Without the injunction (statute as amended by SB 4, 2025) there is no postmark grace period.); ballot must be received by 2026-11-06. CEIR: SB 4 (2025) changed the mail ballot return deadline from three days after Election Day if postmarked by Election Day to Election Day. However, a district court issued a temporary injunction blocking the change in July 2026, reinstating the post-Election Day receipt deadline and requiring ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted if they arrive up to three days after Election Day. The Kansas Supreme Court upheld the injunction ahead of the 2026 primary election.

Local officials may start as early as 2026-10-14.

What the Kansas SOS tells voters (retrieved 2026-09-26): 'Under Kansas statute, the deadline to return your ballot is the close of the polls on Election Day' (K.S.A. 25-1132(b): mail receipt by 7:00 p.m. on election day), but a Douglas County district court's statewide injunction requires ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted if they arrive by the last postal delivery on Friday after the election (Nov 6, 2026); the Court of Appeals denied a stay for the primary (the Kansas Supreme Court declined to intervene, July 30, 2026) and the SOS's renewed stay motion for the general election is pending. The SOS urges voters to return ballots by the close of polls on Election Day. Advance ballots can also be taken to any polling place in the county before the polls close, or to a county drop box (drop boxes lock at the close of polls). Polls are open 7 a.m. - 7 p.m. by default (counties may open at 6 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.).