The polls will open at 8 a.m. at early voting locations across Cameron County today in advance of the Nov. 4 general election.
Local voters will be asked to choose Texas’ next governor while also choosing candidates for U.S. Congress and Cameron County Judge. Additionally, voters within the BrownsvilleIndependentSchool District will be asked to choose candidates for the BISD Board of Trustees.
Early voting will continue through Oct. 31.
This election will once again be held according to the state’s voter identification law, which requires voters to show appropriate photo ID when casting their ballots.
A Texas driver’s license, passport or other form of acceptable photo identification is required to vote, although voters can cast a provisional ballot if they do not have any with them.
For such a provisional ballot to be counted, the voter must bring appropriate ID to the elections office before Nov. 10.
The voter ID requirement was in place during the March primary and subsequent runoff elections, but court actions this month brought the law’s enforcement into question.
After a District Court opined that the law was unconstitutional, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay requiring that the status quo be maintained until after the election. The Texas Secretary of State’s elections division told elections officials across the state last week to conduct the elections according to the voter ID law just a day before training began for early voting poll workers in Cameron County.
The U.S. Supreme Court weighed in over the weekend and gave elections officials definitive instruction to proceed, eliminating the chances that polling place operations would be changed during the election.
For more information about the requirements of the voter ID law, visit the Secretary of State’s website.
Ty Johnson
Here is a lis tof early voting sites:
➤ Cameron County Elections Dept., 954 E. Harrison, Brownsville;
➤ Brownsville Public Library, 2600 Central Blvd., Brownsville;
➤ Brownsville Public Library, 4320 Southmost Blvd., Brownsville;
➤ BISD Administrative Building, 1900 E. Price Road, Brownsville
➤ Cameron Park Community Center, 2100 Gregory Ave., Brownsville;
➤ Browne Road Social Service Center, 9901 California Road, Brownsville;
➤ Harlingen Cultural Arts Center, 576 ‘76 Drive, Harlingen;
➤ San Benito Community Building, 210 E. Heywood St., San Benito;
➤ County Annex Building, 505 Highway 100, Port Isabel;
➤ Old Sam Houston Elementary School, 474 Villarreal, La Feria;
➤ Los Fresnos Community Building, 204 N. Brazil, Los Fresnos;
➤ Rio Hondo Annex Building, 125 Colorado, Rio Hondo;
➤ Santa Maria ISD Board Room, 11119 Old Military Highway 281, Santa Maria;
➤ Santa Rosa County Annex; 116 Santa Vista Ave., Santa Rosa;
➤ Riverside Middle School, 35428 Padilla St., San Benito;
➤ TSTC Cultural Arts Center, 1825 No. Loop 499, Harlingen;
➤ UT-Brownsville La Sala at Student Union, 650 E. Ringgold St., Brownsville;
➤ Valley Baptist Medical Center, 2101 Pease St., Harlingen;
➤ Valley Regional Medical Center, 100A E. Alton Gloor Blvd., Brownsville;
➤ Valley Baptist Medical Center, 1040 W. Jefferson, Brownsville;
➤ South Padre Island City Hall, 4601 Padre Blvd., South Padre Island
The times and dates will vary during early voting.
Call the Cameron County Voter Registration and Elections Office for voting hours and dates at (956) 544-0809.
