Grassroots Legislative Report October 19, 2026
What’s New— Pennsylvania: HB2855 a targeted change to the interaction between state prohibitions and federal compliance requirements, rather than announcing a blanket repeal of Pennsylvania’s restrictions. It does not provide the amendment’s precise language. Voting: Early voting and military voting requirements/
State Legislatures: Still in session:
States in session through to December 31, 2026: Michigan, New Jersey, and Ohio. Pennsylvania session runs through November 30, 2027. These legislatures may come back in session after the election.
Pennsylvania: On August 20, 2026 three Pennsylvania legislators publshed a Memo about legislation they will be introducing. Those three patriots were Rob Kauffman, HD89, Joe Kerwin, HD125, and Joe Hamm, HD84. The memo referred to the The Silencer Shop Foundation v. BATFE (2026), a Northern District of Texas decision that we have followed in the past few months.
The Main points of this memo seeking co-sponsorship in the Pennsylvania House are:
- Federal court ruling: The memo cites Silencer Shop Found. v. BATFE (2026), a Northern District of Texas decision that, according to the sponsors, invalidated certain NFA requirements governing silencers, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns as applied to parties covered by the court’s order—not nationwide.
- Tax-based rationale: The sponsors explain that the NFA’s registration and approval requirements historically supported federal tax collection. After the One Big Beautiful Bill Act reduced the making and transfer taxes on these items to $0, the court concluded that the challenged requirements could no longer rest on Congress’s taxing power.
- Pennsylvania-law problem: Pennsylvania independently regulates certain firearms and related items as “prohibited offensive weapons.” The memo says state law provides an affirmative defense when a person proves, by a preponderance of the evidence, compliance with applicable NFA requirements. That creates uncertainty when those federal requirements have been invalidated or cannot be enforced against that person
- Proposed solution: The legislation would clarify the relationship between Pennsylvania law and the NFA so residents do not face state criminal liability because they failed to satisfy federal requirements that are unconstitutional or otherwise unenforceable.
Scope and status
The memo describes a targeted change to the interaction between state prohibitions and federal compliance requirements, rather than announcing a blanket repeal of Pennsylvania’s restrictions. It does not provide the amendment’s precise language. The page identifies the resulting legislation as HB2855. Support these Representatives in the 2026 election.
Politics 2026
We have compiled a chronological calendar for the November 3, 2026 general election, covering all 50 states and flagging local variation.
The main calendar shows when voters can begin voting in person before Election Day—including in-person absentee voting, not just voting on a machine at an early-voting site. Mail ballots can become available earlier, so I distinguish those where necessary. These are start dates, not registration or ballot-request deadlines.
There are 25, half of the states, that have begun early voting before today, October 20, 2026.
September: Early voting has begun in the following states:
Minnesota, South Dakota, Virginia, Idaho, Vermont, Illinois, and North Dakota, began in late September.
| Start date | State | What begins; local-variation flag |
| Oct. 19 | Alaska | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 19 | Arkansas | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 19 | Colorado | In-person voting at voter service and polling centers; mailed ballots become available separately. |
| Oct. 19 | Connecticut | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 19–24 | Florida | ⚑ Counties may begin Oct. 19; every county must provide early voting beginning Oct. 24. |
| Oct. 19 | South Carolina | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 19 | Texas | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 20 | Hawaii | In-person voting at voter service centers; this is primarily a vote-by-mail state. |
| Oct. 20 | Louisiana | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 20 | Missouri | No-excuse in-person absentee voting begins; qualifying voters can vote absentee earlier. |
| Oct. 20 or earlier | Pennsylvania | ⚑ County-dependent. Voters can apply for, receive, complete, and return a mail ballot in person once ballots are ready. The national compilation identifies Oct. 20 as the latest required opening, not a uniform statewide first day. |
| Oct. 20 or later locally | Utah | ⚑ Early in-person voting window opens; local officials may offer a shorter schedule within the permitted period. |
| Oct. 20 or later locally | Wisconsin | ⚑ Earliest date for in-person absentee voting; municipal clerks set actual dates and hours. |
| Oct. 21 | West Virginia | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 22 | Delaware | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 22 | Maryland | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 24 | Michigan | ⚑ Required nine-day early-voting period begins. This is not necessarily the earliest opportunity to vote: in-person absentee voting and locally expanded early-voting periods can precede it. |
| Oct. 24 | New Jersey | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 24 | New York | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 28 | Oklahoma | Early in-person voting. |
| Oct. 29 | Kentucky | No-excuse early in-person voting begins; qualifying voters have earlier excuse-based opportunities. |
October: Early voting before October 20 has begun in the following states: Maine, California, Montana, Nebraska, Indiana, New Mexico, Ohio, Wyoming, Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, North Carolina, Massachusetts, Nevada, and Alaska.
Three states without no-excuse early voting
These complete the 50-state calendar. They do not offer early voting to every voter simply by choice, but eligible voters can vote absentee before Election Day.
| State | Before-Election-Day option |
| Alabama | Excuse-required absentee voting; confirm ballot availability and eligibility with the absentee election manager. |
| Mississippi | Excuse-required absentee voting, including in-person absentee voting for eligible voters. |
| New Hampshire | Excuse-required absentee voting; availability depends on when local clerks receive ballots, typically about five to six weeks before Election Day. |
Mail-ballot limitation
This is a complete 50-state calendar of in-person opening dates or their closest equivalent—not a complete calendar of first mail-ballot dispatch dates. For mail voting, a statewide date often means “ballots must be sent by this date,” rather than “no county may send them earlier.” Both the national election-administrators’ calendar and the comparative state research warn that local mailing dates can differ. Military and overseas ballots also follow separate timelines.
Voting while serving in the military: What to do as of today!
Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. If you are serving away from your voting residence, act now to check your registration, request your absentee ballot, or return the ballot you already have. There is no single nationwide deadline for military voters: your voting state sets the registration, ballot-request, and ballot-return requirements. Some registration deadlines have passed, but others remain open—do not assume it is too late. Here is the instructions to follow if you are a military member who has not yet received or requested an absentee ballot:To fill out and submit a Federal Post Card Application (FPCA), use the Federal Voting Assistance Program’s online assistant, complete the form, then sign it and send it to the local election office for your U.S. voting residence. Completing the online assistant alone does not submit your application.
1. Start with your state’s instructions
Go to FVAP.gov and select “Register and request your absentee ballot” and your voting state. The FPCA lets eligible military members, eligible family members, and U.S. citizens abroad register to vote and request an absentee ballot using one form. State rules determine the deadline and permitted submission methods.
2. Complete the form
Use the state-specific instructions alongside these general directions:
| Section | What to enter |
| 1 — Eligibility and identity | Select the voter-status category that describes you. Enter your name, any previous registration name, date of birth, and the identifying information required by your state. |
| 2 — Voting residence | EEnter your U.S. voting-residence street address—not your overseas mailing address or a post office box. For a rural address, provide a location description in Section 6 if needed. |
| 3 — Current mailing address | Enter the address where you currently receive mail, even if you want your ballot delivered electronically. Complete the forwarding-address field only if applicable. |
| 4 — Contact information | Provide contact details so the election office can reach you if information is missing or unclear. |
| 5 — Ballot preferences | Select how you want to receive your ballot, using an option your state permits. Follow the state instructions for any political-party designation. |
| 6 — Additional information | Include any state-required information or explanations needed to process your application. |
| 7 — Signature | Read the declaration, sign, and date the form. No state requires a witness or notary signature on the FPCA. |
For a U.S. citizen living abroad, the voting residence is generally the U.S. address where the person was last domiciled immediately before leaving the country. Do not substitute the overseas address in Section 2.
3. Send it to your local election office
Find the appropriate office’s address, email, or fax number in your state’s FVAP instructions. Send the application to that election office—not to FVAP.
- Mail: Print, sign, and date the form, then mail it to your election official.
- Email or fax: Use these only if your state permits them for your situation. Follow the state’s directions for the signed form, transmission cover sheet, and any required follow-up mailing.
- Check registration and ballot-request rules separately: A state may permit electronic ballot requests from registered voters while requiring first-time registration applications by mail.
Your choice of how to receive your ballot is separate from the rules for submitting the FPCA; requesting an emailed ballot does not necessarily mean you may email the application.
4. Confirm receipt and watch for your ballot
Contact your election office to confirm that it received and processed the application. When the ballot arrives, complete and return it under your state’s separate ballot-return instructions and deadline. The FPCA is the application, not the ballot.
If your voting residence is Florida
Florida’s rules distinguish registration from a ballot request:
- If you are using the FPCA to register to vote, you must mail it.
- If you are already registered and are requesting an absentee ballot, you may mail, email, or fax the signed FPCA.
- For the November 3, 2026 general election, FVAP lists October 22 as the receipt deadline to request a mailed ballot and November 3 to request an email/online or fax ballot. Those are ballot-request deadlines, not registration deadlines.
1. If you already have your ballot, complete and return it immediately
Follow the ballot instructions carefully, including all signature and envelope requirements. Check your state’s military-voter rules at FVAP.gov to determine:
- Whether you must return the ballot by mail or may use an electronic method.
- Whether the deadline requires a postmark or actual receipt.
- Whether different rules apply because you are voting from inside or outside the United States.
Do not assume that being allowed to receive a ballot by email means you may return your voted ballot by email.
2. If you requested a ballot but have not received it, use the backup ballot
Contact your local election office to check your request and ballot status. At this point in the election calendar, military voters who requested a ballot but have not received it should prepare and submit the Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot (FWAB), following their state’s eligibility and submission rules. You can find the backup ballot and instructions at FVAP.gov.
If your official ballot arrives after you submit the FWAB, complete and return the official ballot too. Election officials will count only one ballot.
3. If you have not requested a ballot—or are unsure whether you are registered—check today
Go to FVAP.gov, select your voting state, and review its military-voter deadlines. Use the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) to register to vote and request an absentee ballot, subject to your state’s requirements. Even if an ordinary registration deadline has passed, check the military-specific instructions rather than assuming you are ineligible for this election.
Use FVAP’s online assistant to complete the FPCA, then sign and submit it to the local election office responsible for your voting residence. Follow your state’s instructions for mailing, emailing, or faxing it; completing the form is not the same as submitting it. Confirm that the election office received and processed your application.
4. Get help promptly if anything is unclear
Your unit’s Voting Assistance Officer can help you locate the correct forms and state instructions. Your local election office can confirm your registration, application status, and applicable deadlines. Do not wait for an official ballot if there may not be enough time to receive and return it—check whether you qualify to use the FWAB now.
The key distinction: the FPCA registers you and requests your ballot; the FWAB is the emergency backup ballot you use when your requested ballot has not arrived in time.
There is still time to cast your ballot, even if you are on deployment.
