Step Into the Arena
Theodore Roosevelt gave the credit to the man “who is actually in the arena,” not the critic. He won elections and lost them, and he called voting a citizen’s duty.
The tools on this page come from nonpartisan organizations and official election offices. Use them to find your ballot, check your registration and make a plan to vote.
The Man in the Arena
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, and comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.
Get Ready to Vote
Look up your ballot, confirm your registration and set reminders without leaving this page.
Your Ballot and Polling Place
Enter your home address to see what is on your ballot, where to vote and the key dates for your state. Candidates answer the same questions, shown side by side.
Results open in a new tab on VOTE411.org, from the League of Women Voters Education Fund. The Library does not see or store your address.
Registration, Mail Ballots and Reminders
See whether you are registered at your current address.
Start or update your registration. The form follows your own state's rules and deadlines.
Ask for an absentee or mail-in ballot, if your state allows it for your situation.
Sign up for text or email reminders before deadlines and on Election Day.
Tools provided by Vote.org, a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
Go to the Official Source
Vote.gov
The U.S. government’s official guide to registering and voting in every state.
Can I Vote
Created by state election officials. Learn your state’s rules and how and where to vote.
North Dakota Secretary of State
Official election information for North Dakota voters.
Voting in North Dakota
North Dakota is the only state without voter registration. Eligible voters show a valid ID at the polls instead.
Polling places are set county by county. Your local election official is the best source for hours and locations.
Bring One of These
- North Dakota driver’s license
- North Dakota non-driver ID card
- Tribal ID or tribal letter
- Long-term care certificate
It is not only your right to vote, but it is your duty if you are indeed free men and American citizens. I want to see every man vote. I would rather have you come to the polls, even if you voted against me, than have you shirk your duty.
T.R. on Election Day
T.R.’s name was on the ballot in eight general elections. He won six and lost two. Here are six of those election days.
November 8, 1881
His First Win
At 23, T.R. won a seat in the New York State Assembly, his first public office.
November 2, 1886
A Loss, Then a Wedding
Back east from his Dakota ranches, he ran for mayor of New York City and finished third, behind Abram Hewitt and Henry George. A month later he married Edith Kermit Carow in London.
November 8, 1898
From Kettle Hill to Albany
Four months after the charge up Kettle Hill in Cuba, voters made him Governor of New York.
November 6, 1900
Second on the Ticket
He was elected Vice President alongside President William McKinley. Ten months later, he was President.
November 8, 1904
Election Night at the White House
The President went home to Oyster Bay, New York, to cast his own ballot and was back at the White House that evening. He had spent the day trying not to think about the outcome. His son Ted met him with the first returns, from Buffalo and Rochester, and by dinner at 7:30 his election was assured.
After dinner, as Cabinet members and friends came in, ten-year-old Archie carried telegram after telegram to his father, who read them aloud. That same night he made a promise to the country: “Under no circumstances will I be a candidate for or accept another nomination.”
From T.R.’s letter to his son Kermit, November 10, 1904, and his election-night statement.
November 5, 1912
The Bull Moose Run
Three weeks after he was shot in Milwaukee, T.R. finished second as the Progressive Party candidate, behind Woodrow Wilson and ahead of President William Howard Taft. No third-party candidate since has done as well. He conceded that night and said he accepted the result with good humor.
Keep Exploring
The Election of 1904
How T.R. won a term of his own, and the election-night promise that shaped what came next.
The Good Citizen Podcast
Conversations with people working in the arena today, on citizenship, service and public life.
The Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library does not endorse any candidate, party or ballot measure. The tools on this page are provided by independent nonpartisan organizations and official election offices.