Voting in Texas
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The policies governing voter participation are enacted and enforced primarily at the state level. These policies, which include voter identification requirements, early voting provisions, online voter registration systems, and more, dictate the conditions under which people cast their ballots in their respective states.
This article includes the following information about voting policies in Texas:
- Voter registration details, including deadlines and eligibility requirements.
- In-person voting details, including identification requirements, poll times, and early voting provisions.
- Absentee/mail-in voting deadlines and rules.
- Details about voting rules for people convicted of a felony.
- Contact information for election agencies.
Click here for more information about election administration in the state, including voter list maintenance policies, provisional ballot rules, post-election auditing practices, and additional election policy context.
For information on elections happening this year, click here.
Do you have questions about your elections? Looking for information about your local election official? Click here to use U.S. Vote Foundation’s election official lookup tool.
Voter registration
The table below displays voter registration information specific to Texas' 2025 election cycle.
Eligibility and registration details
- Check your voter registration status here.
To register to vote in Texas, an applicant must be a United States citizen, a resident of the county in which he or she is registering, and at least 17 years and 10 months old.[1]
The deadline to register to vote is 30 days before the election. Prospective voters can request a postage-paid voter registration form online or complete the form online and return it to the county voter registrar. Applications are also available at a variety of locations including the county voter registrar’s office, the secretary of state’s office, libraries, and high schools. Voter registration certificates are mailed to newly registered voters.[2]
In-person voting
The table below displays in-person voting information specific to Texas' 2025 election cycle.
Poll times
- See also: State poll opening and closing times
In Texas, all polling places are open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time. Texas is divided between the Central and Mountain time zones. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.[3]
Voter identification
- See also: Voter identification laws by state
Texas requires voters to present photo identification while voting.[4]
The following list of accepted ID was current as of February 2023. Click here for the Texas Secretary of State's page on accepted ID to ensure you have the most current information.
- Texas driver’s license issued by the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS)
- Texas Election Identification Certificate issued by DPS
- Texas Personal Identification Card issued by DPS
- Texas handgun license issued by DPS
- United States Military Identification Card containing the person’s photograph
- United States Citizenship Certificate containing the person’s photograph
- United States passport (book or card)
Identification provided by voters aged 18-69 may be expired for no more than four years before the election date. Voters aged 70 and older can use an expired ID card regardless of how long ago the ID expired.[4]
Voters who are unable to provide one of the ID options listed above can sign a Reasonable Impediment Declaration and provide one of the following supporting documents:[4]
- Copy or original of a government document that shows the voter’s name and an address, including the voter’s voter registration certificate
- Copy of or original current utility bill
- Copy of or original bank statement
- Copy of or original government check
- Copy of or original paycheck
- Copy of or original of (a) a certified domestic (from a U.S. state or territory) birth certificate or (b) a document confirming birth admissible in a court of law which establishes the voter’s identity (which may include a foreign birth document)
The following voters are exempt from showing photo ID:[4]
- Voters with a disability
- Voters with a disability "may apply with the county voter registrar for a permanent exemption to presenting an acceptable photo identification or following the Reasonable Impediment Declaration procedure in the county."
- Voters who have a religious objection to being photographed
Voters who do not have a photo ID can obtain a Texas Election Identification Certificate (EIC) at any Texas driver’s license office during regular business hours. Voters can also obtain an Election Identification Certificate from a mobile station. Locations are listed here.[4]
Early voting
- See also: Early voting
Texas permits early voting. Learn more by visiting this website.
Early voting permits citizens to cast ballots in person at a polling place prior to an election. In states that permit no-excuse early voting, a voter does not have to provide an excuse for being unable to vote on Election Day. States that allow voters to cast no-excuse absentee/mail-in ballots in person are counted as no-excuse early voting states.
Forty-seven states and the District of Columbia permit no-excuse early voting.
Absentee/mail-in voting
- See also: Absentee/mail-in voting
The table below displays absentee voting information specific to Texas' 2025 election cycle.
Texas voters are eligible to vote absentee in an election if:
- They cannot make it to the polls on Election Day because they will be away from the county on Election Day and during early voting;
- They are sick or disabled;
- They are 65 years of age or older; or
- They are confined in jail.[5]
To vote absentee, a request must be received by county election officials no later than close of regular business on the eleventh day before the election. The completed ballot must then be returned by the close of polls on Election Day.[6]
Local election officials
Do you need information about elections in your area? Are you looking for your local election official? Click here to visit the U.S. Vote Foundation and use their election official lookup tool. |
Voting rules for people convicted of a felony
In Texas, people who receive a final felony conviction regain their voting rights automatically upon completion of their entire sentence, including incarceration, parole, probation, or supervision–voting rights can also be restored before the completion of the sentence with a pardon. A final felony conviction includes only the sentence pertaining to the crime. Click here for more information on Texas' treatment of felony convictions and voting rights.[7]
Voting rights for people convicted of a felony vary from state to state. In the majority of states, people convicted of a felony cannot vote while they are incarcerated but may regain the right to vote upon release from prison or at some point thereafter.[8]
Election administration agencies
Election agencies
- See also: State election agencies
Individuals seeking additional information about election administration in Texas can contact the following local, state, and federal agencies.
Texas County Clerks
Texas Secretary of State, Elections Division
- Physical Address: James E. Rudder Building
- 1019 Brazos St.
- Austin, Texas 78701
- Mailing Address: P.O. Box 12060
- Austin, Texas 78711-2060
- Phone: 512-463-5650
- Toll free: 1-800-252-8683
- Fax: 512-475-2811
- Email: elections@sos.texas.gov
- Website: http://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/
Texas Ethics Commission
- Physical Address: Sam Houston Building
- 201 East 14th St., 10th Floor
- Austin, Texas 78701
- Mailing Address: P. O. Box 12070
- Austin, Texas 78711-2070
- Phone: 512-463-5800
- Email: reception@ethics.state.tx.us
- Website: https://www.ethics.state.tx.us
U.S. Election Assistance Commission
- 633 3rd Street NW, Suite 200
- Washington, DC 20001
- Phone: 301-563-3919
- Toll free: 1-866-747-1471
- Email: clearinghouse@eac.gov
- Website: https://www.eac.gov
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See also
- State of Election Administration Legislation Reports
- Voter ID in Texas
- Election administration in Texas
- Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Texas
Elections in Texas
- Texas elections, 2025
- Texas elections, 2024
- Texas elections, 2023
- Texas elections, 2022
- Texas elections, 2021
- Texas elections, 2020
- Texas elections, 2019
- Texas elections, 2018
- Texas elections, 2017
- Texas elections, 2016
- Texas elections, 2015
- Texas elections, 2014
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, “Request for Voter Registration Applications,” accessed February 27, 2023
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, “Voter Registration,” accessed February 27, 2023
- ↑ VoteTexas.gov, "Who, What, Where, When, How," accessed February 27, 2023
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Texas Secretary of State, "Required Identification for Voting in Person," accessed February 27, 2023 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "tvid" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ VoteTexas.gov, "FAQ," accessed December 16, 2013
- ↑ VoteTexas.gov, "Early Voting," accessed December 16, 2013
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State Ruth R. Hughs, "Request for Voter Registration Applications," accessed February 27, 2023
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "Felon Voting Rights," April 6, 2023
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