Election season is underway in Virginia. Here's what to know about voting

It's that time of year again: the temperature is starting to drop just a bit, the leaves are starting to change colors, and political ads are starting to litter the commercial breaks.

It's election season in the DMV.

While the 2024 general election looms the largest — between the race for U.S. president and those in the U.S. Senate and House — in Virginia, every year is an election year. The commonwealth is already gearing up for important statewide elections on Nov. 7.

Here's what to know if you're preparing to vote in Virginia.

2023 Virginia election deadlines

Here's a quick timeline, according to the Virginia Department of Elections:

Sept. 22: The first day of early in-person voting. You can find a list of early voting locations by county and city here.

Oct. 16: Voter registration deadline to vote in the 2023 election. You can still register after this date, through Election Day, and vote using a provisional ballot. Read more about provisional ballots, and how to register to vote in Virginia, below.

Oct. 27: Deadline to apply by mail, by fax and online for an absentee ballot to be mailed to you. Read on to learn how to apply for absentee (mail-in) ballots.

Nov. 4: Last day of early in-person voting, which ends at 5 p.m. Deadline to apply for an absentee ballot in-person. (This is also the last day a voter can request a replacement absentee ballot if there's an issue.)

Nov. 6: Last day a voter can request an emergency absentee ballot.

Nov. 7: Election Day.

What are the races in this fall's Virginia election?

All seats in the Virginia House of Delegates and the Virginia Senate are up for election this November.

That means this election decides control of both houses in the General Assembly — which could have a huge impact on certain partisan flashpoint issues in a purple state, like abortion access.

Right now, Republicans control the House by a narrow margin, while Democrats lead in the Senate -- meaning each party is campaigning hard to win a majority of the 100 seats in the House and 40 seats in the Senate.

A key example is the 31st District, which includes parts of Loudoun County. It's quickly becoming one of the most expensive races in Virginia -- and on the first day of early voting, county election officials said turnout is already high.

"Things are great," said Richard Keech, deputy director of the Loudoun County Office of Elections and Voter Registration. "We’ve had over 400 voters today. Last year on the first day of early voting we had 297, so we’ve already blown that out of the water."

If the issues being discussed this year are getting you invested in local elections you normally skip on your ballot, check out our guide to getting up-to-speed fast here.

Check below for positions outside the state House and Senate up for election this fall, by county and city.

City of Alexandria: No local elections in 2023; only members of the Virginia General Assembly.

City of Fairfax: Court Clerk, Commonwealth's Attorney and Sheriff.

City of Falls Church: Court Clerk, Commonwealth's Attorney, a School Board member and a City Council member.

Arlington County: Court Clerk, Commonwealth's Attorney, Sheriff, Commissioner of Revenue, Treasurer, a County Board member and a School Board member.

Fairfax County: Court Clerk, Commonwealth's Attorney, Sheriff, County Supervisor positions and School Board members.

Loudoun County: Court Clerk, Commonwealth's Attorney, Sheriff, Commissioner of Revenue, Treasurer, County Supervisor positions, School Board members and the Soil and Water Conservation Director.

There are also ballot measures related to school district construction projects, parks and recreation projects, and transportation projects.

Prince William County: Court Clerk, Commonwealth's Attorney, Sheriff, County Supervisor positions, School Board members and the Soil and Water Conservation Director.

How to register to vote in Virginia

To vote in the 2023 election, Virginia residents need to be registered to vote. The deadline to register is Oct. 16.

Here are the requirements to register to vote in Virginia:

• Have a valid Virginia DMV driver's license or state ID card.
• Be a citizen of the United States.
• Be a resident of Virginia.
• Be 18 years old on or before the next general election. (If you are 17, you can still register and vote in elections if you will be 18 on or before the next general election.)
• Not currently convicted of a felony or judged as mentally incapacitated and disqualified to vote.
• If you're at least 16, but will not be 18 on or before the next general election, you can qualify to preregister to vote. (Preregistered individuals cannot vote — they're just setting up registration so that they can automatically vote in the first general election after they turn 18.)

To register to vote, go here to visit the Virginia Department of Elections' citizen portal. The website will walk you through the process after you click the green "Register to Vote" button. (Make sure you know your Social Security number and have your driver's license or state ID with you for the process.)

According to the Virginia Department of Elections, you can register after Oct. 16 and still vote in the state's general election by using a provisional ballot.

Provisional ballots allow someone to vote if their ability to vote is in question -- for example, if they are not in the database of registered voters or if they decided to vote in-person after requesting a mail-in ballot.

Provisional ballots are evaluated when all other votes are counted. If a voter is indeed eligible to vote, their provisional ballot is included in the tally. You can learn more about provisional ballots here.

How to find your polling place and sample ballots in Virginia

Once you're registered to vote, the easiest way to find your polling place — and see what candidates are on the ballot for your district — is to visit this Virginia Department of Elections website.

You can type in your Virginia address to see your Election Day voting site, as well as a list of early voting locations in your district. Those early voting locations also serve as ballot drop-off sites if you want to vote via absentee ballot but can't mail it back by the deadline.

The same search results include a tab with a preview of candidates on the ballot in your district. Click "Ballot Info" to see names of candidates running for each position up for election.

It's not a bad idea to double check which candidates are running in your district and where your voting location is -- Virginia redrew its election districts after the 2020 census.

How to apply for a mail-in ballot in Virginia

At the same Virginia Department of Elections website where you can register to vote, you can also apply for an absentee ballot.

Voters no longer need to meet specific requirements to vote absentee. Any registered voter can get a mail-in ballot for the 2023 election, as long as they apply before the deadline of Oct. 27 by mail, fax or online.

Voters that apply in-person at the general registrar's office by Nov. 4 can still get an absentee ballot before the general election.

Click the green "Apply to Vote Absentee by Mail" button and follow the on-screen instructions to fill in your personal information. You'll need your Social Security number and driver's license or state ID with you.

Registered Virginia voters can also now choose to join the Virginia permanent absentee voter list. That option will send the voter ballots by mail, sent to the address on their Virginia voter registration record, for all future elections in which they're eligible to vote.

You have to go hunting for the option — it's difficult to find on the Virginia Department of Elections Website, until you're in the process of signing up for an absentee ballot.

Then you can choose to either get your mail-in ballot for the upcoming election or click the option that reads, "I would like to join the Virginia permanent absentee voter list. I will receive ballots for all future elections by mail to the address on my Virginia voter registration record. I will only receive ballots for elections in which I am eligible to vote."

Once you get your mail-in ballot, you can fill out your ballot and then either mail it back to the registrar's office or drop off the sealed envelope at any of the early voting locations in your district.

Your absentee ballot has to be postmarked by the date of the election, or a date before then, "and received by your general registrar's office by noon on the third day following the election," for your vote to be counted, according to the Virginia Department of Elections.

How to vote early in-person in Virginia

Early voting for the 2023 election begins Sept. 22 in Virginia and will continue until Nov. 4. (That's the Saturday before the election on Nov. 7.)

If you're registered to vote, all you need to do to vote early in person is to show up at an early voting location in your district.

You don't need any specific reason to vote early, and you don't need to fill out an application to do so.

You do need to bring an acceptable form of ID or sign an ID Confirmation Statement, and share your name and address.

If you request an absentee ballot and then decide to vote in-person instead, you'll need to turn in your blank absentee ballot at the polling place. If you don't, you'll need to fill out a provisional ballot instead.