Every morning during the absentee voting period, we get the absentee file from the state and upload it into VoteBuilder. Each locality must get their absentee data to the State Board of Elections, and we receive that data once a day. We then put it into a different format so it can be uploaded. This means there will often be a couple business days between the locality receiving absentee requests and the requests being uploaded to VoteBuilder.
- Our goal is to upload before 10am, but sometimes the state is a little late getting the data to us or there is an issue with formatting, so it is possible the update will not be at the same time every single day. We fully understand that many people around the Commonwealth are counting on this data, so if we have any issues with the absentee upload please know that will be our priority until fixed.
- The "Exclude Already Voted" suppression (under the Absentee tab) may be automatically set if absentee voting for the November general has begun. If you pull a list, it will NOT include people who have voted unless you un-check that box.
- Sunday and Monday uploads tend to be smaller, since most absentee votes are processed during the week.
- We get one update per day from the state, so updates will not occur more than once per day.
- Because some military absentee requests that come from overseas are “automatic” absentee requests, you may see absentee request dates that are months old--this is because the Request Date in these cases is the date the initial request was filed. This means you should not necessarily exclude ‘old’ absentee requests, as any request in VAN is for the election listed. If you want to exclude international mailing addresses, you can do so during the Absentee Label Printing process. Find more legal information about military absentee requests here.
If you have a VoteBuilder problem or question that is not covered here, please fill out a support request and we will address your issue as soon as possible.