Election Day is November 3, 2026. A record number of Texans are registered to vote and are passionate about certain candidates and issues but may not know exactly what their position is on the candidates and issues down the ballot. This quick guide gives you what you need to know about voting, as well as resources related to everything on the ballot.
EARLY VOTING
Early voting is a convenient way to avoid the lines on Election Day, which may be particularly appealing given the current public health situation. Early voting began on October 19 and continues through October 30. Early voting can be done at any location in your home county:
In Travis and Williamson Counties, early voting hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 12 p.m. to 6 p.m on Sunday. Please note that Travis has some sites that may be open later.
MAIL IN VOTING
Texas offers mail in, or absentee voting for those unable to attend a polling place in person. If you are 65 or older, out of the county during the entire election period, sick, or disabled, you are eligible to request a ballot by mail. This request must be received by your county of residence by October 23rd, and they need to be back at your county’s election division by election day.
ELECTION DAY VOTING
If you wait until November 3 to vote, polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. that day. Anyone in line when the polls close will be given the opportunity to vote.
VOTING STATUS IN “SUSPENSE”
If you check your voting status and it is listed in “Suspense”, do not worry as you will still be able to vote. You will be asked to fill out a “Statement of Residence” which confirms your current address. Please try to vote during Early Voting to give yourself time to clear up any issues should you encounter them.
ISSUES AT THE POLLS
If you encounter issues at the polls or have questions about ballots, you can contact the ACLU’s Election Protection Hotline at 1-866-OUR-VOTE.
VOTING RESOURCES
Voters have the opportunity to cast their ballots for a wide range of candidates from the US Senate and Governor to local judges and school board members. The options may be overwhelming, so here are few resources to help you decide your vote:
You can see everything on your ballot through the League of Women Voters’ ballot generator at Vote411.org. You are allowed to bring in paper to assist you in filling out your ballot, however you are not allowed to reference a phone or digital device at the polling site. This means you can bring in campaign literature to reference when voting, however you cannot show it off to people in line or while voting, or pass it along to someone else while they are voting. You must also take it with you when you exit the polling location.
You also cannot wear any clothing that could be considered political in nature. You may be asked to take it off or turn a shirt inside out. Please save yourself (and the Election Judge) some trouble with this.
BALLOT PROPOSITIONS
If you live in Austin, you’ll have the chance to vote on ten different ballot propositions. For brevity, I will only be focusing on three of them
Proposition A & B - These ballot propositions would authorize money to be spent on parks, recreation, aquatics, open space (Prop A), and libraries (Prop B). The total cost for both is around $50 per year for the average homeowner.
Proposition I - This proposition would amend the City charter to require an independent auditor audit the city’s spending every five years, and within the year before the city proposes any tax increase. It requires that the audit agency finds savings in excess of their fees that the city will subsequently cut from its budget.
The city has already hired an independent consulting company to audit our budget and spending, and the results are expected next summer. By contrast, Prop I would create a permanent independent audit to occur at least every five years, costing up to $10M in fees each time. Those auditor fees are theoretically offset because the auditor is required to recommend budget cuts totaling at least the same amount as their fees, and the city is required to comply with the recommendations, no matter what they are.
The prop is also backed by Save Austin Now which should give anyone pause.
If you live in RRISD, there is also Proposition A which will raise $30 million to be used for district wide staff pay increases, including a retroactive raise to the beginning of the school year that staff would see in their December pay check. Unfortunately, half of the money is subject to recapture but this is due to the funding mechanism for this Prop.
For those in Leander ISD, there is also a Proposition A which will raise $12.1 million that will also be used for staff pay increases along with other district expenses. It is also subject to recapture but is much needed money to help decrease the district’s budget deficit.
CITY COUNCIL ELECTIONS
For those of you who live in Austin, five city council seats are also open. Those seats are in Districts 1, 3, 5, 8, and 9. More information on the candidates can be found on the City of Austin’s Voter Resources page available here.
WHAT YOU’LL NEED TO VOTE
You will be asked to show a photo ID to vote in Texas. Acceptable forms include: Texas driver's license issued by the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS); Texas election ID certificate; Texas personal ID card; Texas handgun license; US military ID with photo; US citizenship certificate with photograph (doesn't need to be current); or a US passport. Forms must be current or expired less than four years. For voters aged 70 or older, the acceptable form of photo identification may be expired for any length of time if the identification is otherwise valid.
Voters without ID: If you don't have ID and cannot obtain one due to a reasonable impediment, you'll need to sign a sworn statement that there is a reason why you don't have any of the accepted IDs, and present one of the following: certified birth certificate; valid voter registration certificate; or a current utility bill, government check, bank statement or paycheck, or government document with your name and an address. If you meet these requirements and are eligible to vote, you may vote in the election.
If you don't have ID and do not have a reasonable impediment to obtaining one or did not bring ID to the polling place, you may cast a provisional ballot. In order to have the provisional ballot counted, you will be required to visit the voter registrar's office within six (6) calendar days of the date of the election to either present one of the forms of photo ID or submit a temporary affidavit, or, if applicable, qualify for the disability exemption, in the presence of the county voter registrar while attesting to the fact that you do not have any of the required photo IDs.
If you are registered to vote at a different address than what is on your driver’s license, do not worry! The ID is only to verify your name matches what is on the voter rolls. Hence why you can vote with a passport which don’t have addresses in them.
