The 2022 midterm election season has begun, and the entire U.S. House of Representatives and a third of the U.S. Senate is up for election. Locally, city council members, mayors, senators, attorney general and the governor are also on the ballot.
The voter registration deadline has already passed for this year’s election, and other deadlines are quickly approaching. From mail-in ballot applications to early voting deadlines, here are all of the important dates leading up to Election Day on Nov. 8.
Early voting by personal appearance — Monday, Oct. 24 to Friday, Nov. 4
As long as a person is registered to vote in the state of Texas, there are no special regulations or qualifications necessary to vote early in person. By allowing Texas voters to cast their ballots during the days and weeks prior to an election, the early voting period exists to make the voting process more convenient and accessible to all Texans.
Last day to apply for ballot by mail — Friday, Oct. 28
Applications to cast a ballot by mail must be addressed to the early voting clerk in the county where a voter is registered; applications addressed elsewhere may be rejected. A list of all county early voting clerks can be found on the Texas Secretary of State website.
Applications can be submitted in person or by mail, email or fax, and they must be received, not postmarked, no later than Friday, Oct. 28 within regular business hours. Vote Texas recommends sending applications by mail as early as 60 days before an election. This allows plenty of time to receive a ballot, mark it and mail it back to the early voting clerk.
There are special cases for Texans 65 years or older or with physical disabilities that can be found on the Vote Texas website on the Voting by Mail page.
Last day to receive ballot by mail — Tuesday, Nov. 8
To cast a ballot by mail, or ABBM, a Texas driver’s license, Texas personal identification number or election identification certificate number must be provided. If one of those numbers has not been issued, the last four digits of the voter’s Social Security number must be provided. If none of these numbers have been issued, there is a box on the ABBM that must be checked to indicate such.
As with the application, ABBMs can be submitted in person or by mail, email or fax. According to the Secretary of State, if a ballot’s carrier envelope is not postmarked, it must be received by Tuesday, Nov. 8 within regular business hours. If it is postmarked by 7 p.m. at the location of the election on Election Day, it must be received by Wednesday, Nov. 9.
