Texas Voting Requirements & Information
U.S. Vote Foundation’s Texas Voting Requirements and Information directory informs you of Texas voting rules and options. It focuses on Texas-specific voting guidelines and information for all voters, including domestic, overseas, and military voters. Here you can find out about Texas voter eligibility, voter ID requirements, registration, absentee and early voting options, ways to transmit voting documents and links to specific-Texas voting tools. It's an all-in-one Texas voting resource.
General Information
Registration
You can register to vote or update your registration information:
- by mail
- in person at your elections office
- at some public assistance offices and motor vehicle offices
Election Day Voting
Polling places are open from 7am to 7pm on Election Day.
Find my polling place
Early Voting
Any registered voter may vote early at a designated a county location. Generally, early voting in person begins 17 days before Election Day and ends on the 4th day before Election Day. Contact your local election office for availability of early voting which happens between 6am-10pm.
Vote-By-Mail
To vote by mail ballot in Texas you must be a registered voter and meet one of the following conditions:
- You are away from your county on Election Day and during early in-person voting
- You are sick or disabled
- You are 65 years of age or older on Election Day
- You are confined in jail, but eligible to vote
- Expected to give birth within three weeks before or after Election Day
You will need a witness for your application. Be sure to remember how you sign the application because you’ll need to sign your actual ballot the exact same way.
Address, stamp, and mail the completed Application for Ballot By Mail (ABBM) to the Early Voting Clerk in your county. You may also fax the application if a fax machine is available in the Early Voting Clerk’s office.
If you are 65 and older, or a voter with disabilities, you can submit an Annual Application. If you apply to the Early Voting Clerk within 60 days of an election, this application will be valid for all elections in the following calendar year.
Mail ballots arrive with instructions, a ballot envelope, and a carrier envelope. Use only black or blue ink as you follow instructions and fill out your ballot. Place your completed ballot first in the ballot envelope. Then place the ballot envelope in the carrier envelope. Sign the carrier envelope where indicated with the same exact signature you used on the ballot by mail request. You must also add your Texas drivers' license number, Texas personal ID number, or the last 4 digits of your Social Security number. It is important to add your phone number and email address so that election officials can contact you to make corrections online if necessary. Place appropriate postage on your carrier envelope before returning your ballot to the pre-addressed location.
All completed mail ballots must be returned to the County Election Administrator’s Office in the Official Carrier Envelope provided to you. You must return your own ballot.
Mailed ballots must be postmarked by 7pm on Election Day and must be received by 5pm on the first mail delivery day after Election Day. You may return your ballot to the County Election Administrator’s Office in person on Election Day from 7am - 7pm. Bring identification and a Reasonable Impediment Declaration (RID) form which you can download at https://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/forms/pol-sub/reasonable-impediment-declaration.pdf.
Early voting now occurs from 6am to 10pm if you want to return your ballot by hand. 24 hour voting is no longer available. Be sure to check your county’s polling locations at www.votetexas.gov because drop boxes have been reduced and drive through voting has been eliminated.
Please visit the US Vote Disability Voting Guide to see accommodations for the registration and voting process.
Eligibility Requirements
You are eligible to vote in Texas if you:
- Are a U.S. citizen
- You are a resident of the county where you submit the application
- Are at least 18 years old by Election Day
You are NOT eligible to vote in Texas if:
- You have been declared by a judge to be mentally incapacitated without the right to vote
- You are currently serving a sentence including incarceration, parole, probation, or extended supervision for a felony conviction
Restorative Requirements
- If you have completed a felony sentence, including any term of incarceration, parole, supervision, period of probation, or you have been pardoned, then you are immediately eligible to register to vote
You may preregister to vote in Texas
- as of 2 months prior to your 18th birthday
If you are a student, you are eligible to vote in Texas if:
- You reside in Texas but are attending college in another state
- You reside in another state but attend college in Texas
- Texas does not accept student ID; refer to Texas Identification Requirements section
Identification Requirements
Voter Registration
To register to vote in Texas you should provide:
- Your Texas Driver's License or State non-driver ID Number
If you do not have these IDs, you may provide:
- Last Four Digits of your Social Security Number
If you do not have a Texas Driver’s License, Texas ID or Social Security number and need help getting ID, go to www.voteriders.org
Voting In-Person
In Texas, you need to show a valid ID to vote. You can use any ID from this list:
- Texas Election Identification Certificate
- Valid Texas Voter ID Card with Photo
- Citizenship Certificate with photo
- Valid Military ID
- Valid Texas Driver's License
- License to Carry Concealed Weapon or Firearm
- Valid US Passport
- Texas Personal ID
With the exception of citizenship certificate, ID must be current or have expired no more than four years prior to Election Day. If you do not have one of the Texas valid IDs and need help getting ID, go to www.voteriders.org.
If you do not have an ID from the above list, in Texas additional, acceptable forms of ID include:
- Voter Registration Card
- Current Utility Bill or Pay Check or Bank Statement
- Government Check
- Birth Certificate
To use these supporting forms of ID, you will be required to execute a Reasonable Impediment Declaration.
- Your Texas ID Number
- Last 4 Digits of your Social Security Number
- Your Texas Driver's License Number
You will need your Texas drivers license number, Texas ID number, Election ID Certificate Number, or the last four digits of your Social Security number when you apply for your ballot and when you return your ballot. Don't forget to put this info on your envelope. This ID must match the info the State has on file.
Voter Materials Transmission Options
Domestic Voter |
In-Person |
|
Fax |
|
Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voter Registration | |||||
| Absentee Ballot Request | |||||
| Blank Ballot To Voter | |||||
| Voted-Absentee Ballot Return |
State Lookup Tools – Am I Registered?
State Elections Website
Can I View my Sample Ballot?
Where is my Overseas or Military Ballot?
Am I Registered?
Where are my Early Voting Locations?
State Voter Registration FAQ
Overseas / Military Voter Information
Where is my Polling Place?
Where are my Early Voting Locations?
Where is my Ballot?
Has my Ballot Been Counted?
Eligibility Requirements
Overseas Voters
U.S. citizens living abroad have the right to vote as absentee voters, provided they are eligible to vote in their state. If you are living outside of the U.S. permanently, indefinitely, or temporarily, your voting rights stay with you, even if you never voted when you lived in the U.S. To vote from overseas:
- Complete and send an overseas voter registration/ballot request form to your election office in the U.S. This is one specific form that will register you as an overseas voter and request your absentee ballot – simultaneously.
Many states allow children who were born overseas, but never lived in the U.S., to use their U.S. parents’ last residence address to register.
Military Voters
Service members and their eligible family members living outside their voting jurisdiction (within or outside the U.S.) are able to vote as absentee voters.
- If you are a service member, or an eligible family member, there is a single form to file for both voter registration and ballot request. It is often called the “Federal Post Card Application” or the FPCA form. This form must be re-filed with your election office each time you change location.
To vote as a service member or eligible family member:
- Complete and send a voter registration/ballot request form “FPCA” to your election office in the U.S. It is the same form in all states.
Identification Requirements
Voting Overseas
U.S. citizens living overseas may register and request a ballot using the overseas voter registration/ballot request form. You will have the following identification options when completing the form:
- U.S. State or Territory or District Issued ID
- Option to Indicate that you do not have the Requested ID
- Last 4 Digits of your Social Security Number
Voting Military
Service members and their dependents may register and request a ballot using the federal voter registration/ballot request form ("FPCA"). You will have the following identification options when completing the form:
- U.S. State or Territory or District Issued ID
- Option to Indicate that you do not have the Requested ID
- Last 4 Digits of your Social Security Number
Voter Materials Transmission Options
Overseas Voter |
In-Person |
|
Fax |
|
Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voter Registration | |||||
| Absentee Ballot Request | |||||
| Blank Ballot To Voter | |||||
| Voted-Absentee Ballot Return |
Military Voter |
In-Person |
|
Fax |
|
Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voter Registration | |||||
| Absentee Ballot Request | |||||
| Blank Ballot To Voter | |||||
| Voted-Absentee Ballot Return |