Early voting for the Nov. 3 general election starts Monday, Oct. 19. On the ballot for El Pasoans are a slew of local, state and federal races – from congressional, governor and Senate seats to City Council and county positions.
More than 540,000 people, an all-time high, are registered to vote in El Paso for this election – with more than 19 million registered voters statewide.
That follows a statewide effort, including in El Paso County, to clear a backlog of hundreds of thousands of voter registration applications and updates left unprocessed for more than a year because of a Texas Department of Public Safety software error.
Whether you plan to vote early or wait until Election Day, here’s what you need to know to make the process easier.
Mark your calendar: Early voting starts Monday, Oct. 19
- Early voting: Monday, Oct. 19, through Friday, Oct. 30. Times vary depending on location.
- Election Day: Tuesday, Nov. 3. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Visit epcountyvotestx.gov to find a map search tool and ZIP code lookup to find your nearest voting location – no matter where you are.
Registered voters can cast their ballots at any designated early voting location in El Paso County.
Check your registration and see what’s on your ballot
Check your voter registration status with your name, address and date of birth – or your voter ID number – at the El Paso County Elections Department voter dashboard. (The deadline to register to vote in this election was Oct. 5).
The same dashboard allows you to look up your personalized sample ballot, which shows the races and candidates for your registered precinct.
Learn more about the candidates before you vote
If you’re still an undecided voter, check out the El Paso Matters Voter Guide, where you can find Q&A’s with candidates in contested races, as well as all our full election coverage that includes in-depth interviews with those asking for your vote.
To read more about key statewide races, check out the Texas Tribune, where you can find more about the candidates for Senate, governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and others.
Bring an accepted form of identification
Texas requires voters to present one of seven approved forms of photo identification when voting in person. These include:
- Texas driver’s license.
- Texas election identification certificate.
- Texas personal identification card.
- Texas license to carry a handgun.
- U.S. military ID with a photograph.
- U.S. citizenship certificate with a photograph.
- U.S. passport, either a book or card.
What if you don’t have one of those IDs?
Voters who do not possess and cannot reasonably obtain an approved photo ID may be able to vote by presenting an alternative document, such as a voter registration certificate, current utility bill, bank statement, government check or paycheck, and completing a Reasonable Impediment Declaration.
Leave your cellphone in your pocket
Texas law restricts the use of cellphones and other wireless communication devices in the room where voting is taking place.
You can print your sample ballot and mark your choices before heading to the polls – but you can’t use your cellphone to look up candidates or refer to electronic notes while voting.
Oh, and no selfies or photographs in the voting area.
You can vote by mail only certain circumstances
Texas limits voting by mail to eligible voters. You generally qualify if you:
- Will be 65 or older on Election Day.
- Have a sickness or disability that prevents you from voting in person without assistance or a likelihood of injury to your health.
- Expect to give birth within three weeks before or after Election Day.
- Will be away from your county of registration during both the early voting period and Election Day.
- Are confined in jail but otherwise eligible to vote.
The deadline to apply for a mail ballot for this election is Oct. 23, and the application must be received by the elections office by that date.
Don’t forget your sticker!
Once you cast your ballot, don’t forget to pick up your “I Voted” sticker designed by El Paso-area students featuring El Paso and Texas themes. Then you can pull out your phone for that selfie.
The post Early voting for Nov. 3 election starts Monday with record El Paso voter roll appeared first on El Paso Matters.
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