It’s National Voter Registration Day and counties, polling locations, and college campuses are setting up to encourage young voters to register. Voters must be registered at least 30 days before election day.
Those who are already registered are encouraged to check/update their registration status.
National Voter Registration Day is a nonpartisan civic holiday dedicated to registering eligible voters. The day is held annually on the fourth Tuesday in September and organizers say nearly 4.5 million voters have been registered to vote on the holiday since 2012.
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Check Voter Registration Status/Register to Vote
If you're unsure of your current voter status, you can check your voter registration status on the Texas Secretary of State's website on the "Am I Registered?" page. If you have moved to a new address within the same county or have changed your name, you can update your information online as well.
- On the Texas Secretary of State's online voter registration page, you can fill out and then print and sign your registration form. You MUST still mail the form to your county election office and it must be postmarked by the deadline.
- If you don't have a printer you can request an application be mailed to you, but that returned application must also be postmarked by the deadline.
- You can also register to vote through your county registrar.
Texas Voting Requirements
- Must be a U.S Citizen.
- Must be at least 18 years old on election day.
- Must be a resident of the county you register.
- Cannot be serving a felony conviction.
- Cannot have been declared mentally incompetent by final judgment of a court of law.
Texas Requires ID to Vote
Once you're registered, you'll still need a valid ID to vote in the state of Texas. The state accepts seven forms of identification:
- A Texas driver's license
- Texas election ID certificate
- Texas ID card
- Texas handgun license
- U.S. Citizenship certificate with a photo
- U.S. Military ID with a photo
- U.S. Passport.
For voters ages 18-69, photo IDs CAN be expired for up to four years. For those over the age of 70, a photo ID can be expired for any length of time.
If you do not have a photo ID, you may qualify for a Reasonable Impediment Declaration by showing a copy or an original of one of the following:
- Certified domestic birth certificate or court-admissible birth document
- Current utility bill
- Bank statement
- Government check
- Paycheck
- Government document with your name and address including your voter registration certificate.
Key Dates to Remember
- Oct. 11: Deadline to register
- Oct. 24- Nov. 4: Early voting
- Nov. 8: Election Day
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