Student Voting Guide | Wyoming
This student voting guide explains the laws for the state of Wyoming. If you wish to vote from your school address, check the student voting guide for the state in which you attend school. If you are interested in casting an absentee ballot in your home state, check the student voting guide for that state.
The Brennan Center is committed to giving students as much information as possible to help you exercise your constitutional right to vote. More than ever in recent history, changes to voting laws are being implemented in ways that can affect your ability to make your vote count. In addition to the content you will find in this Student Voting Guide, a report that we issued last year documents a number of these changes and we continue to track passed and pending voting law changes here. While we are working to give you up-to-date information, we urge you to be proactive! In order to ensure you have all the information you need before casting your vote, you should also check with your state and local election officials for information about additional requirements or regulations.
This voting guide was last updated in July 2012.
You may register to vote in Wyoming if you are a U.S. citizen, a resident of Wyoming, and will be 18 by the next general election.[1] Wyoming offers Election Day registration.[2] If you register on Election Day, you must show ID.[3] (See Identification below for ID requirements and acceptable IDs.)
Regular registration closes 14 days before Election Day.[4] For the 2012 general election, you must register in person or postmark your application no later than October 22nd to avoid missing this deadline. You can register by mail or in person at the county or city clerk’s office in your county of residence.[5] Mail-in registration forms must be received by close of business on the 14th day before the election. [6] Wyoming law does not permit voter registration drives.[7] If you register by mail, you must present ID to, and sign your registration form in front of, a notary public or a registration agent.[8] (See Identification below for ID requirements and acceptable IDs.) The notary public must also sign your registration form.[9]
If you have been convicted of a felony it may impact your ability to vote.[10] If you think you might be affected, you should contact your county clerk’s office.
In Wyoming, your voting residency is determined by the place you currently physically live, and have the intention of returning to when absent.[11] You do not gain or lose your voting residency just by attending college or university.[12] There is no requirement that you intend to remain permanently or indefinitely. If you come to Wyoming for school and consider it your home, you are entitled to vote under the law.[13]
At School. Students can establish residency in Wyoming if they have a present intention to remain at their Wyoming school address for the time being, and they intend to make it their principal home.[14] Any other interpretation of the residency laws is unconstitutional. Voting in Wyoming may be considered a declaration of residency, potentially making you subject to other laws that govern state residents.
At Home. Students who lived in Wyoming before moving elsewhere to attend school, and who wish to establish or keep their Wyoming voting residency (i.e., at their parents’ Wyoming address), should have no problem doing so unless they have already registered to vote in another state. Like most states, Wyoming allows students to keep their voting residency even if they move out of the district to attend school, and the only way you will lose this residency is by establishing residency in a new state. While registering to vote in another state is not automatically considered an abandonment of your Wyoming residency, some judges or officials might view it as such. If you have established residency in another state and are moving back to Wyoming with the intent to reside here, you will have to follow the normal registration procedures to re-register in Wyoming.
Challenges to Residency. Students have the right to cast a ballot as a resident of Wyoming regardless of whether they pay in-state or out-of-state tuition. Your county clerk can investigate your claim of residency if the clerk has reasonable cause to believe that you are not qualified to vote in Wyoming.[15] The county clerk may consider a number of factors, including where your family lives, where you work, where your vehicle is registered, and the residence listed on the your driver’s license.[16] You can prove Wyoming residency by showing your name and address on any form of photo ID, including a valid photo ID from the University of Wyoming, a Wyoming Community College, or a Wyoming public school, or on any current utility bill, bank statement, paycheck, or any other government document.[17] Any person who is denied registration is entitled immediate written notice and an appeal to the local court within 5 days.[18]
Only official poll workers can challenge your eligibility to vote at the polls.[19] If your eligibility to vote is challenged, you may vote by provisional ballot after providing a written oath as to your eligibility.[20] Your ballot will only be counted if you prove to the county clerk that you are a valid resident by the close of business on the day following the election.[21] Remember, no valid challenge may be made solely on the basis of your student or tuition status.
You will have to show ID in order to register to vote in Wyoming. If you register by mail, you will have to show ID in front of a notary public or registration agent before you mail in your form and include the notary’s signature on the form.[22] If you register at the polls on Election Day, you will have to present ID at that time.[23]
If you are a first time voter who registered by mail you will have to show identification again before you vote.[24] You will either have to show identification at the polls or, if you vote absentee, provide a copy of your ID in the mail with your completed absentee ballot.[25]
You can fulfill the identification requirement by showing:
- One of the following:
- Wyoming driver’s license or identification card;
- Driver’s license from another state;
- ID card issued by a local, state or federal agency;
- U.S. passport;
- Photo ID from the University of Wyoming, a Wyoming Community College, or Wyoming Public School;
- Military ID; or
- Two of the following in any combination:
- Certification of U.S. Citizenship;
- Certificate of Naturalization;
- Draft record;
- Voter registration card from another state or county;
- Original or certified copy of a birth certificate bearing an official seal;
- Certification of birth abroad issued by the Department of State; or
- Any other form of identification issued by a government agency.[26]
Any voter can vote absentee in Wyoming.[27] A request for an absentee ballot can be made in person, by phone, by mail, or by e-mail.[28] You can request an absentee ballot up to the day before Election Day.[29] You will then be mailed an absentee ballot. Alternatively, you can obtain and vote an absentee ballot starting 40 days before an election. (See Early Voting below for more information).Your county clerk must receive your completed absentee ballot by 7:00 p.m. on Election Day for your vote to be counted.[30] Neither your application nor your ballot needs to be witnessed. If you are a first-time voters who registered by mail, you should include a copy of either a current, valid photo identification or a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document which shows your name and address along with your absentee ballot.[31]
As a convenience to voters, you can vote an absentee ballot in person in Wyoming beginning 40 days before the election and ending on Election Day.[32] At early voting sites, you can vote any precinct’s ballot for that county. Check with your county clerk’s office for the exact times and locations.
Last Updated in July 2012
[1] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-3-102(a) (2012).
[2] Wyo. Stat. Ann. §§ 22-3-104(f)(ii), (g) (2012).
[3] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-3-104(f)(ii)(A) (2012).
[4] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-3-102(a) (2012).
[5] Wyo. Stat. Ann. §§ 22-3-104(d), (h) (2012).
[6] Wyo. Admin. Code SOS EP Ch. 3 § 7 (2011).
[7] Wyo. Admin. Code SOS EP Ch. 16 § 5 (2011).
[8] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-3-103(b) (2012); Wyo. Admin. Code SOS EP Ch. 16 § 4(b) (2011).
[9] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-3-103(b) (2012).
[10] Wyo. Stat. Ann. §22-3-102(a)(v) (2012).
[11] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-1-102(a)(xxx) (2012).
[12] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-1-102(xxx)(B)(2) (2012).
[13] See Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-1-102(a)(xxx)(B)(2) (2012).
[14] See Dunn v. Blumstein, 405 U.S. 330, 330 (1972); Williams v. Salerno, 792 F.2d 323, 328 (2d Cir. 1986).
[15] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-3-105(a) (2012).
[16] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-3-105(d) (2012).
[17] Wyo. Admin. Code SOS EP Ch. 2 § 6 (2011).
[18] Wyo. Stat. Ann. §§ 22-3-105(c), (d) (2012).
[19] Wyo. Stat. Ann. §§ 22-15-104; 22-15-108; 22-15-109(b) (2012).
[20] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-15-105(b) (2012).
[21] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-15-105(d) (2012).
[22] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-3-117 (2012).
[23] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-3-118 (2012).
[24] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-3-118 (2012).
[25] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-3-118(b)-(c) (2012).
[26] Wyo. Admin. Code SOS EP Ch. 2 § 6 (2011).
[27] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-9-102(a) (2012).
[28] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-9-104(a) (2012); Wyo. Secretary of State, Absentee Voting Information, http://soswy.state.wy.us/Elections/AbsenteeVoting.aspx (last visited July 9, 2012).
[29] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-9-105 (2012).
[30] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 22-9-118 (2012).
[31] Wyo. Stat. Ann. §22-3-118(c) (2012).
[32] Wyoming Secretary of State, Absentee Voting Information, http://soswy.state.wy.us/Elections/AbsenteeVoting.aspx (last visited July 9, 2012).
