Assembly Elections 2026: How to vote from home for elderly and disabled

The States of Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and the Union Territory of Puducherry are heading for elections to their Legislative Assemblies.

Approximately 17.4 crore radical are eligible to ballot successful the elections.

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To easiness the process of voting and to marque it accessible to each people, the Election Commission of India has updated and streamlined its “home voting” facility. This allows aged and disabled voters to formed their votes from location alternatively than visiting a polling booth. 

Here’s everything you request to know. 

Eligibility criteria

Senior citizens aged 85 years and supra and Persons with Disabilities(PwDs) who person a minimum 40% benchmark disablement (as certified by a aesculapian authority) are eligible to ballot from home.

Some indispensable work workers, similar radical moving successful healthcare, who cannot permission their posts, whitethorn besides beryllium eligible nether the “Absentee Voter” category.

How to use for a ballot from home?

In bid to  ballot from home, 1 indispensable travel a strict timeline: 

Form 12D

Within 5 days of the predetermination notification being issued successful your constituency, you indispensable taxable Form 12 D to the Returning Officer(RO), i.e. the idiosyncratic liable for overseeing the full predetermination process wrong a circumstantial constituency. 

Visit by Booth Level Officers

Booth Level Officers, oregon BLOs, are tasked with visiting the homes of identified 85+ and PwD voters to administer and cod these forms.

Documentation

PwD voters indispensable connect a transcript of their disablement certificate to the form.

Process of location voting 

Once your exertion for location voting is approved, a squad volition sojourn your house

A afloat team, including 2 polling officials, a videographer to papers the process and information officials, volition sojourn your residence.

A impermanent voting compartment is acceptable up successful your location to guarantee the secrecy of the ballot.

The day and approximate clip of the sojourn volition beryllium sent to you via SMS successful advance.

If you are not location during the archetypal visit, the squad volition docket a 2nd and last visit. However, if you miss some the visits, you cannot ballot astatine the polling booth connected predetermination day. 

Total fig of location voters

The Election Commission of India has released the full fig of eligible location voters successful the 4 states and 1 Union Territory going to elections.