Voting In Texas

To be eligible to vote in Texas you must be:

• A U.S. citizen
• A resident of the county in which you intend to vote
• At least 18 years old (you may register at 17 years and 10 months)
• Not convicted of a felony (unless your sentence is completed, including any probation or parole)
• Not declared mentally incompetent by a court of law

You do not need to show ID to register, but you must provide your Texas driver’s license number, or personal ID card number issued by the deparment of public safety on your registration application. If you have neither, you must give the last four digits of your Social Security number or a statement that you have not been issued one. If you register by mail and do not provide the above information and are a first time voter, you must show an acceptable form of identification in addition to your voter registration certificate when you vote.

There is no length of residency requirement before registering to vote in Texas. To vote in an upcoming election, the properly completed voter registration form must be postmarked 30 days before the upcoming election to be valid. In person registration must also be completed 30 days before an election.

You may request a postage-paid application by filling out the application form. A voter registration application will be mailed to you soon after. You must mail the voter registration application to the voter registrar in your county of residence. You may also pick up a voter registration application at many post offices, libraries, Texas department of public safety offices, or Texas department of human services offices throughout the state.

If you moved within the same county where you are currently registered, you must file the new address information in writing with your voter registrar or you may submit the in county change online. If you miss this deadline, you may return to your old precinct to vote, but you will be required to complete a "statement of residence" confirming your new address in your new precinct.

If you moved to a new county, you must re-register in your new county of residence to be eligible to vote in the election. If you miss this deadline, you may be eligible to vote a "limited" ballot. A limited ballot is available only during the early voting period. The limited ballot application will also act as a voter registration application. Contact your county voter registration official for more information.

If you are a student who spends several weeks or months a year in different locations, but you want to vote in Texas, you will need to decide which place in Texas is the geographic location you consider to be your permanent home. This location should be where you intend to return after any temporary absence. When you are describing your residence on the voter application, you are making a factual statement to the best of your knowledge and belief. You are presumed under Texas law to be in the best position to make a factual determination concerning where your residence is for registration purposes. However, you cannot register in more than one location; if you register in one county but put another Texas county as your home on the application, your application will be forwarded to the Texas county of your residence.

To verify your voter registration status, please contact your county voter registration official.

You are eligible to vote a provisional ballot if:

• You claim to be an eligible voter, but your name does not appear on the list of registered voters, and your registration cannot be determined by the voter registrar
• You are a designated first-time voter on the list of registered voters, but are unable to produce the required identification
• You have applied for a ballot by mail, but have not returned it or cancelled it with the main early voting clerk
• You vote during extended polling hours ordered by a state or federal court
• You are registered, but are attempting to vote in a precinct other than the one in which you are registered
• You do not present a voter registration certificate or any other acceptable form of identification
• You are registered in the precinct, but your address is not located in the political subdivision conducting the election
• You voted in another party's primary in the primary election

If you claim to be registered, but your name is not on the list of registered voters, the presiding judge shall call the voter registrar to determine if you are registered. If registration can be confirmed, and you can show identification, you may vote a regular ballot, or be directed to the correct precinct if you are in the wrong precinct. You may vote a provisional ballot, but you must be informed that it will not be counted if:

• You registered in a different precinct
• It is indicated on the voter registration list that you voted by mail
• You have no identification

Texas does offer a limited ballot, but it is not considered a provisional ballot. Limited ballots are available if you have moved from one Texas county to another and are registered to vote in the former county of residence, but your voter registration in the new county will not be effective by election day due to the 30 day required period between registration and the election. This limited ballot is available only during early voting by personal appearance or by mail. The limited ballot contains only offices or propositions to be voted on statewide, or offices or propositions of territorial units of which you were a resident both before and after your move.