Important deadlines for voting by mail in Ohio's November 8 general election: Absentee ballot dates and guidelines

CLEVELAND — Election Day is right around the corner -- and if you plan to vote using an absentee ballot, there are some important deadlines you need to know.

Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Saturday, Nov. 5 at noon

You only have until 12 p.m. on Nov. 5 to request an absentee ballot. How can you request one? There are three options:

• Print your request and mail it to your county board of elections.
• Have an application mailed to you by your board of elections.
• Make your own application and mail it in.

In-depth details of all three steps are available HERE.

RELATED: VOTER GUIDE | November 8 general election in Ohio: See what's on the ballot and how to find your polling place

Deadline to mail your ballot: Monday, Nov. 7

All absentee ballots sent through the mail must be postmarked by Nov. 7. 

The Ohio Secretary of State’s office also notes that it's the voter’s responsibility to make sure the mail-in ballot has enough postage.

“If you return your absentee ballot by mail, it must be postmarked no later than the day before Election Day and received by your county board of elections no later than 10 days after the election,” according to the Secretary of State’s site. “By state law, a postmark does not include a date marked by a postage evidence system such as a postage meter. The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) estimates that it may take two to five days for your voted absentee ballot to be delivered to your board of elections by mail.”

RELATED: Ohio Issue 2 on the November ballot: Here's what you need to know about the measure to ban noncitizen voting

Deadline to submit your absentee ballot in person: Tuesday, Nov. 8 at 7:30 p.m.

Don't want to mail in your ballot? That's fine. You can drop it off at your county's board of elections up until the polls close at 7:30 p.m. on Election Day.

Your ballot can also be delivered by a “near relative,” which is defined as follows: “The voter’s spouse or the voter’s father, mother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, grandfather, grandmother, brother, or sister of the whole or half blood, or the son, daughter, adopting parent, adopted child, stepparent, stepchild, uncle, aunt, nephew, or niece.”

You can find the address for your county's board of elections HERE.

RELATED: Ohio Issue 1 on the November ballot: What to know about the constitutional amendment

Deadline for the board of elections to receive your mail-in ballot: Friday, Nov. 18

This is the last date your mail-in absentee ballot will be accepted as long as it was postmarked by the Nov. 7 deadline.

I submitted my absentee ballot... How can I track it?

Simple. There's a tracking tool for all Ohio voters to use HERE.