Updated: 6/5/2020

A Nashville judge has ruled that the State of Tennessee must give any registered voter the option to cast a ballot by mail in light of the coronavirus pandemic.

Historically, Tennessee has limited access to absentee ballots and mail-in voting to those who are actively sick, disabled, traveling or elderly. Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle on Thursday ordered the state government to abandon this restriction and no longer require a specific excuse for why a resident could not vote in person.

State attorneys argued that mail-in voting was not feasible, but there is a precedent of success in other states. A judge ruled that the state is now required to provide any eligible voter with an absentee ballot if they wish to avoid voting in person to avoid coronavirus. The order does not require the state to automatically mail absentee ballots to all registered voters, as is done in some states. Voters must still ask for an absentee ballot so they can vote by mail.