Is there information I can get about the candidates?

Newspaper stories about candidates and announcements of public forums and debates are published for several weeks before an election. Many candidates also have individual websites with contact information.

The election commission office can supply a list of candidates as well as sample ballots. Local newspapers, radio, and television stations will carry news stories regarding candidates and upcoming elections. You may also call political party headquarters for information.

Call our office at 423-775-7816

Your voter registration card will have the County District, City Ward (if applicable), Special School District (if applicable), Tennessee Senate, Tennessee House, and U.S. Congressional District printed on it as well as your voting location. If you have not registered or you cannot locate your card, you may call our office at 423-775-7816 and we will be happy to advise you of your election district.

Voters with disabilities can vote absentee by mail (they must still vote in person the first time they vote if they registered by mail unless a doctor’s statement is provided at the time of registering or when applying to vote absentee by mail) or they may be assisted by any one of their choice (except a candidate) if they want to vote at the polls. By providing a doctor’s statement, the voter may be placed on the permanent absentee voting register and an application for an absentee ballot will automatically be sent for every election the voter is eligible to vote in.

You can register and vote in the precinct in which your school is located or in your home precinct. If you are a full-time student in a school in Tennessee that is located in a county other than where you live, you may vote an absentee by-mail ballot. This also applies to your spouse who may be residing with you. If you are attending a college outside Tennessee, you also may vote absentee by mail if you will be outside Rhea County during the entire early voting period and on Election Day. Remember, if you registered by mail, you must vote in person the first time you do so after registering. Call our office at 423-775-7816 for information on requesting your absentee by-mail ballot.

Our voting machines are designed and set up to allow for someone’s name to be written in when their name does not appear on the ballot. Just ask the election official at the precinct or Early Voting location to explain how the write-in feature of the voting machine works. Any person attempting to be elected by write-in ballots must complete a notice requesting such person’s ballots be counted no later than Noon fifty (50) days before the general election. Any person attempting to receive a party nomination by write-in ballots must complete a notice requesting such ballots be counted no later than Noon fifty (50) days before the primary election.


If you move to another state less than thirty (30) days before the election for electors for President and Vice President and, for that reason, do not satisfy the registration requirements of your new residence for that election, you may vote in the Presidential election only in the precinct in Tennessee where you were last registered. You may vote either in person or by absentee ballot (you must vote in person if you registered by mail and have not voted since registering).

Not more than 90 days and not later than 7 days before an election, you may request an absentee ballot from the Election Commission Office either in person, by mail, or by fax. If the request includes your name, address, social security number, the address outside the county to which you want the ballot mailed, the election(s) in which you wish to vote, the reason you must vote absentee by mail and your signature, it will serve as an official application for a ballot. You must mail your absentee ballot back to the Election Office in time to reach us before the polls close on Election Day (8:00 p.m. Eastern time).

Any registered voter in Rhea County, regardless of where they live within the county, may vote during Early Voting. This is a period generally from the twentieth day to the fifth day before an election when you can vote at the election commission office or (for six days only) at the Spring City Municipal Building. Call the election commission office at 423-775-7816 for dates and times or check the local newspapers. Information also will be posted on this website.

You also have the option of voting absentee by mail. To do so, you must meet criteria set out in Tennessee law. An application for absentee ballot with these excuses may be found here.

Your voter registration card has your Election Day polling location printed on it. You may also check in the section entitled “precinct locator.”

Once you register to vote, you can vote in future elections as long as you maintain your address in Rhea County or respond to the confirmation notices that may be sent to you. If you are not sure of your status, you can call our office at 423-775-7816.

The State of Tennessee does not require you to register by political party. However, you must select a political party if you vote in a primary election. You may vote for candidates of either party in a general election.

If the Application for Voter Registration has been properly filled out with all the required information, your voter registration card will be mailed to you, usually within two weeks after we receive your application.

You have the option of using your old name or changing your name after you get married. If you want to change your name, you can complete a mail-in registration form and check the box for “Name Change.” Call our office at 423-775-7816 for more information on making a name change. You should also notify the election commission office in person or in writing if your address changes.

If you move to Tennessee from another state, you must complete a new Application for Voter Registration and check the box indicating “New Registration” or you may register in person at the Rhea County Election Commission Office, County Clerk’s Office, Motor vehicle office when applying for a driver’s license, Department of Human Services, Department of Health, and the Department of Veteran’s Affairs. If you move to another state, you must check with the election office there for information regarding their voter registration procedures.

Once you move to the new county, you must re-register at your new address. Complete the Application for Voter Registration and check “New Registration.” Send the form to the election commission office in that county.

If you are already registered in Rhea County, you do not have to re-register. However, you do have to change your address. You can do that by:
a) Completing a mail-in registration form and checking the box that says “Address Change.” Mail or hand-deliver the form to the election commission office 125 Court Street, Suite #1, P.O. Box 181, Dayton, TN 37321.
b) Printing your new address on the back of your current voter registration card, sign it and mail it to the election commission office; or
c) Voting at one of our Early Voting locations and changing your address at that time.

Using a ball-point pen (black or blue ink only), PRINT the information required on the form. Next, read the VOTER DECLARATION and mark the “Yes” or “No” statements with the appropriate response. Sign your name by the “X.” Fold the form and seal it, address it to the Rhea County Election Commission, 125 Court Street, Suite #1, P.O. Box 181, Dayton, TN 37321, place a stamp on it and mail it at least 30 days before an election.

You may call the election commission office at 423-775-7816 or write to us at 125 Court Street, Suite #1, P.O. Box 181, Dayton, TN 37321, email us at tomdavis@rheavote.com or you can pick one up at a Rhea County Election Commission Office, Clyde W. Roddy Library, Rhea County Clerk’s Office, Rhea County Register of Deeds Office or download a printable form

Yes, you can fill out a mail-in voter registration form to register to vote. You must sign the form and mail it to the election commission office early enough for it to be postmarked at least thirty (30) days before Election Day. The address to mail the form to 125 Court Street, Suite #1, P.O. Box 181, Dayton, TN 37321.

In-person Voter Registration is available at the Rhea County Election Commission Office, County Clerk’s Office, Motor vehicle office when applying for a driver’s license, Department of Human Services, Department of Health, and the Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Although you may register at any time, you must register no later than 30 days before the day of the election you want to vote in.

You can register as soon as you become a resident.

Any U.S. Citizen who is at least eighteen (18) years old on or before the next election, who is a resident of Tennessee and who has never been convicted of a felony or, has had their rights of citizenship restored or received a pardon, may register to vote.

If you have never registered to vote in Tennessee, changed your address since you last registered or had your rights restored as required by law after being convicted of a felony, you must register or re-register.