 voting mistakes that could stop your vote from counting. Wearing certain political apparel to the polls. Generic vote apparel is typically fine, but some states have laws about wearing clothing with political endorsement or campaigning on it that could get you sent home from the polls. 27 states have laws requiring the signature on your ballot return envelope matches the signature on other documents in their files, but some states will give you a chance to fix it. While some states only require your ballot to be postmarked by election day, other states require your ballots be physically returned by the close of polls on election day.