Voting from the US — Dominican Republic elections from abroad

Dominicans living in the United States can vote in some Dominican elections from their US city — but only after registering abroad (empadronamiento) with the Junta Central Electoral (JCE). The JCE says registration is voluntary and free: you present your cédula de identidad y electoral at the JCE office for your city or at a JCE registration drive, before the roll closes 120 days before the elections. Registering abroad has a trade-off the JCE spells out: you then vote only in that city abroad, and you lose the right to vote in the Dominican Republic in the May elections (all checked October 3, 2026).

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Key facts

ItemDetail (checked October 3, 2026)
AuthorityJunta Central Electoral (JCE)
How you registerPresent your cédula at the JCE Office of Services Abroad (OSE) for your city, or at a JCE registration drive (JCE)
DeadlineBefore the roll closes, 120 days before the elections (JCE)
Next cycleRoll abroad closes per the schedule for the general elections of May 2028 (JCE)
FeeEmpadronamiento para Voto en el Exterior: 0.00 (JCE fee table for offices abroad)
What you vote for from abroadPresidential and overseas deputies (diputados de ultramar) only (JCE, October 14, 2022)
Effect in the DRBarred from voting in the DR in the May elections; February elections only if you are in the country (JCE)
How you voteIn person at JCE polling stations abroad (JCE records); no postal or online vote found on the JCE pages checked

Registering to vote abroad (empadronamiento)

The JCE’s new-cédula FAQ answers ‘how do those of us who live abroad vote where we live?’ this way: ‘Los dominicanos que residentes en el extranjero deben empadronarse para poder votar en la ciudad donde residen. Este trámite se realiza de forma voluntaria presentando la cédula de identidad y electoral, ya sea en la Oficina de Servicios en el Exterior (OSE) correspondiente a su ciudad, o en los operativos de empadronamiento que realiza la JCE antes del cierre del padrón, 120 días antes de las elecciones.’

In short:

  • What you bring: your cédula de identidad y electoral.
  • Where: the JCE office for your city, or a JCE registration drive. The JCE offices in the US are listed on the Dominican cédula page.
  • When: before the roll closes, 120 days before the elections.
  • Cost: free — the JCE’s 2025 fee table for its offices abroad lists ‘Empadronamiento para Voto en el Exterior 0.00’.
  • With the new cédula: the JCE says that ‘Al momento de hacer el cambio a la #NuevaCédula podrá solicitar, si así lo desea, su empadronamiento’ — you can register when you renew your cédula. Renewal abroad runs from May 2026 to January 2028, per the JCE.

The trade-off

The JCE says: ‘Una vez empadronado, el ciudadano/a solo podrá votar en la ciudad del exterior que haya indicado como su lugar de residencia. Al mismo tiempo, quedará inhabilitado para votar en la República Dominicana en las elecciones de mayo, y solo podría votar en las de febrero si para la fecha se encuentra en territorio nacional.’ Once registered abroad, you vote only in the city you named; you cannot vote in the Dominican Republic in the May elections, and you could vote in the February elections only if you are in the country on that date.

What elections you can vote in

In a news item dated October 14, 2022, the JCE explained: ‘Si usted está empadronado, por ejemplo, aquí en New York, usted puede votar en las elecciones presidenciales y en las de diputados de ultramar solamente, y puede votar en República Dominicana para las municipales.’ Registered in New York (for example), you vote in the presidential elections and for overseas deputies (diputados de ultramar) only; municipal elections are voted in the Dominican Republic.

Deadlines

  • 2028 cycle: the JCE’s FAQ says that ’el cierre del padrón electoral en el exterior se realizará conforme al cronograma establecido para las elecciones generales de mayo de 2028’ — the roll abroad closes on the schedule for the May 2028 general elections.
  • Last cycle, for reference: the JCE closed registration abroad on January 21, 2024, for the presidential and overseas-deputy elections of May 19, 2024. Its web pre-registration application is now disabled.

Check the JCE for the exact 2028 closing date as it approaches.

How you vote

The JCE’s records describe voting in person at polling stations abroad. For the 2012 elections, a JCE news item reports that 605 ballot cases were shipped ‘para igual cantidad de colegios electorales en el exterior’ — for as many polling stations abroad — delivered to JCE offices in cities including New York, New Jersey, Boston, Washington, Miami and Puerto Rico. We found no postal or internet voting on the official JCE pages checked on October 3, 2026.

Does voting in a Dominican election affect my US status?

For US citizens who are also Dominican: federal law (8 U.S.C. 1481) lists the acts by which a US national can lose US nationality, and voting in a foreign election is not among them; those acts count only when performed voluntarily with the intention of relinquishing US nationality. See: 8 U.S.C. 1481.

If you are not a US citizen and have a pending or future immigration case, ask an immigration attorney before relying on a general rule: find pro bono legal help.

Authoritative sources

Last verified: 2026-10-03. General procedural information for educational purposes. Electoral rules and deadlines change for every election. Verify directly with the Junta Central Electoral before each election. Not legal advice.