Provisional Ballots

For the first time in Virginia, residents who had not registered to vote in advance could participate in Tuesday's election. The so-called Same Day Registration (SDR) law allows people to register and cast a provisional ballot, which later is be counted only if election officials verify the person is qualified. Preliminary estimates do not precisely break out the exact number of people who this election took advantage of SDR, a Democrat-sponsored measure that passed on a near party-line vote in 2020. But election officials expect a report due next month will confirm SDR drove a spike in provisional ballots in Tuesday's election.

Estimated Provisional Ballots in November Election

Provisional ballots, driven by Same Day Registration, were more common Tuesday in communities with a major university.

Top 5 Most Provisional: Share of Total Ballots

* University in or adjacent to locality.

Note: Estimated provisional ballots from the Virginia Department of Elections. Updated as of 11/11/2022. At time of publication Fredericksburg had not reported provisional estimates. Monday is the deadline for local election officials to evaluate provisional ballots. Other situations when people cast a provisional ballot include no ID, name not found in the poll book, an outstanding early ballot application and an indication they already had voted.