Essex County, Massachusetts
Your guide to voting in Essex County, Massachusetts: registration, sample ballots, ID requirements and where to get local help. Home to about 824,000 people, Essex County ranks 3rd in population among Massachusetts's 14 counties. Massachusetts counties do not run elections. Your city or town clerk or election office handles registration, mail ballots and polling places.
Next Election
March 7, 2028
Voter Portal
Register Online
What's On My Ballot?
ID Requirements
Absentee / Early Voting
Registration Deadline
Register at least 10 days before an election.
Why Voting Matters
Voting is how Essex County residents shape the decisions made in their name. The next election for Essex County voters is Massachusetts's presidential primary on March 7, 2028; local elections can come sooner, so check your local election office. Many Essex County jobs are in health care and manufacturing, so decisions about health care costs and manufacturing jobs hit close to home.
Essex County voters cast about 400,000 ballots for president in 2024, down about 5% from 421,000 in 2020. Compared with the county's roughly 660,000 adult residents, that works out to about 61%, close to the statewide rate of about 60%.
Around 260,000 adults here did not vote for president. Some aren't eligible, yet the rest are untapped power: one more voter in every 20 of them would mean about 13,000 extra Essex County ballots, enough to change the result in many close contests.
Essex County packs about 1,673 people into each square mile across 492 square miles, so a single precinct can hold thousands of voters. About 12% of all Massachusetts residents live here.
ZIP codes in or partly in Essex County include 01810, 01812, 01826, 01830, 01831, 01832, 01833 and 01834, plus 51 more. Confirm your registration, read through your sample ballot before Election Day, and choose whether you will vote early, by mail or in person. Invite someone you know in Essex County to join you.
Voter Assistance Resources
Local election help in Essex County: Massachusetts counties do not run elections. Your city or town clerk or election office handles registration, mail ballots and polling places. For registration, polling places, early voting and absentee ballots, contact your city or town election office.
Statewide directory, Massachusetts Find Local Elections Offices page:
https://www.sec.state.ma.us/divisions/elections/voter-resources/find-my-local-election-office.htm
See your sample ballot. Where Do I Vote MA, which shows your ballot:
https://www.sec.state.ma.us/WhereDoIVoteMA/
You can also preview a personalized ballot at Vote411.org.
To ask a question or report a problem at the polls, call or text Election Protection at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683), a free nonpartisan hotline. For help in Spanish call 888-VE-Y-VOTA (888-839-8682); for Asian languages call 888-API-VOTE (888-274-8683).
Voters with disabilities in Essex County can ask for an accessible voting machine, curbside voting where offered, and help from a person of their choice. If you run into barriers, contact the Disability Law Center, Massachusetts's Protection and Advocacy agency, at (800) 872-9992. VoteRiders (844-338-8743) offers free help with voter ID.
Need a ride? Many local transit agencies and ride services offer free or discounted rides to the polls on Election Day, so check what is available before the next election. See our Massachusetts voter page for statewide options. Details can change, so confirm with the official election office.
Military and overseas voters can get help from the Federal Voting Assistance Program at 1-800-438-VOTE (8683) or fvap.gov.
Sign up to be an election worker
Election workers (often called poll workers) keep voting running smoothly in Essex County. Most are paid for their time, get free training, and help their neighbors cast their ballots. You can work a full day, a shorter shift, or help before Election Day. County and municipal election offices recruit and train their own workers, and the EAC's Help America Vote page links to yours. Find out how to sign up:
https://www.eac.gov/help-america-vote
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