Texas voting registration deadline approaching

By Zaed Yousuf

Published Jan 30, 2020

Karina Shumate, 21, a college student studying stenography, fills out a voter registration form in Richardson, Texas, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020. Democrats are hoping this is the year they can finally make political headway in Texas and have set their sights on trying to win a majority in one house of the state Legislature. Among the hurdles they’ll have to overcome are a series of voting restrictions Texas Republicans have implemented in recent years, including the nation’s toughest voter ID law, purging of voter rolls and reductions in polling places. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Karina Shumate, 21, a college student studying stenography, fills out a voter registration form in Richardson, Texas, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

The deadline to register to vote is coming up for Texas voters.

Voters must register by Feb. 3 and can do so by visiting the Vote Texas website and filling out an application. The deadline for absentee ballot applications is Feb. 21 and can be found here.

“We’re registering as many people as possible in hopes they will vote,” said Carol Donovan, the chair of the Dallas County Democratic Party. “We just simply asked people to register to vote, and people who hadn’t registered were very excited about registering.”

In 2018, only 57% of registered voters in Tarrant County cast their ballot. Both parties are hoping for an increased turnout in March.

Voter turnout in Texas has been increasing every cycle. A record 16 million voters are registered for the upcoming election, with 1 million registered in Tarrant County.

TCU students and faculty who are registered to vote in Tarrant Country will be able to cast their ballots at the Brown-Lupton University Union, as long as they have valid photo identification.

“Being able to vote on campus makes student voting easy and accessible and can raise voter turnout for the area,” said junior political science student Jordan Varat.

Before coming to the polls, Texas residents can visit the Texas Secretary of State’s website and confirm their registration status by providing either their name and county or driver’s license number and date of birth.

Early voting will begin Tuesday, Feb. 18 and will last until Feb. 28.

Texas, as well as 14 other states, will hold primary elections on Super Tuesday, March 3.