What is ballot curing?
Making a mistake on your ballot is more common than you think. Ballot curing is an important protection designated by Arizona State Law to give voters who have made a minor error on their ballot-by-mail/early ballot a chance to fix the issue and make sure their vote gets counted.
Before counting all ballots-by-mail and early ballots, election officials compare the signature on the green affidavit envelope with the voter’s signature in the voter’s registration record. If the signature does not match, the county recorder will attempt to contact the voter by mail, phone, text message, and/or email to notify the voter of the inconsistent signature and explain how to fix the issue.
Voters who need to cure their ballot should receive notice of the signature mismatch and have an opportunity to correct it. Are you unsure if your mail-in ballot has been counted or think there might be an issue with your signature? You can check the status of your ballot online.
Check the status of your mail-in ballot
Maricopa and Pima county voters can alternatively check the status of their ballot using their county recorders’ websites.
Maricopa County Voter Dashboard
Pima County Early Ballot Status Portal
2024 ballot curing deadline
Voters can correct their signature mismatch until Sunday, November 10, 2024, at 5:00 pm. If they do not cure their signature by this time, their ballot will be rejected.
If a ballot is rejected because it was missing a signature, the voter must cure the missing signature on Election Day, November 5, 2024 by 7:00 pm.
How to cure a ballot with a signature error
County officials will provide the voter with options to correct their signature in the notice they send. In all counties, voters can correct their signature by visiting their local county recorder’s office in person. In 2024, county recorders’ offices will be open:
- Monday, November 4, from 8 am – 5 pm
- Tuesday, November 5 (Election Day), from 8 am – 7 pm
- Wednesday, November 6, 8 am – 5 pm
- Thursday, November 7, 8 am – 5 pm
- Friday, November 8, 8 am – 5 pm
- Saturday, November 9, 8 am – 5 pm
- Sunday, November 10, 8 am – 5 pm
COUNTY RECORDER CONTACT INFORMATION
Other ways to cure a ballot
Some counties may provide additional ways to correct a signature.
Election officials in some counties will verify a voter’s identity over the phone using certain personal identifiable information contained in their voter record. In other counties, a voter can cure through a text program that provides them with a link to a secure portal where they can validate their signature and verify their identity by uploading an image of their Arizona Driver License or Arizona State ID. Check your county recorder’s website to see which methods are available.
