Early Voting Begins Today

Early voting for the Dec. 9 runoff elections begins today Monday, Nov. 27, and ends on Tuesday, Dec. 5.

Voting centers in Harris County will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday.

Races on the ballot

City of Houston, Mayor

John Whitmire | Sheila Jackson Lee

City of Houston, City Controller

Chris Hollins | Orlando Sanchez

City of Houston, Council Member, At-large Position 1

Julian Ramirez | Melanie Miles

City of Houston, Council Member, At-large Position 2

Willie Davis | Nick Hellyar

City of Houston, Council Member, At-large Position 3

Richard Cantu | Twila Carter

City of Houston, Council Member, At-large Position 4

Roy Morales | Letitia Plummer

City of Houston, Council Member, District D

Travis McGee | Carolyn Evans-Shabazz

City of Houston, Council Member, District G

Tony Buzbee | Mary Nan Huffman

City of Houston, Council Member, District H

Cynthia Reyes Revilla | Mario Castillo

City of Baytown, Council Member District No. 4

Kim Kosteck | James Franco

City of Bellaire, Mayor

Aaron Perry | Gus E. Pappas

Where to vote

If you're in Harris County, you can check locations and wait times on this map. Make sure 'early voting' is checked.  Here's a PDF of the locations for early voting.

Sample ballots

Harris County makes it easy to find your sample ballot. Just fill out a form with your name and address and they'll give you a ballot.

You can also see a sample ballot for Ft. Bend County.

Requirements to vote in Texas

State law requires you to register 30 days prior to the election in which you wish to vote. An applicant’s spouse, parent, or child (acting as an agent) may complete and sign a voter registration application as long as they are a registered voter or have applied for voter registration.

• You must be a United States citizen.

• You must be at least 18 years old by Election Day.

• Have not been declared totally mentally incapacitated or partially mentally incapacitated without the right to vote by a final judgment of a court exercising probate jurisdiction

• If convicted of a felony, you must have fully completed the sentence, including any term of incarceration, parole or supervision; or completed a period of probation ordered by any court; or been pardoned or otherwise released from the resulting disability to vote.

How do I find out if I'm registered to vote?

• Anyone can check their registration in less than two minutes through the Texas Secretary of State. All you need is your name, county and date of birth. More voter registration information in Texas.

• Specifically, for Harris County, you can verify your voter registration information on HarrisVotes.org. Simply click on "Voter Registration," then select "Voter Registration Search." By inputting your name or address, you can find your voter registration record.

Voter ID requirements

If you've confirmed you are registered, but don't have or never received your voter registration card, here's what you need to know. Under Texas law, voters can use one of the seven acceptable forms of photo identification at the polls when voting in person.

• Texas driver's license issued by the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS)

• Texas election identification certificate issued by DPS

• Texas personal identification card issued by DPS

• Texas handgun license issued by DPS

• United States Military ID card with photo

• United States citizenship certificate with photo

• United States passport (book or card)

Voters who don't have and can't "reasonably obtain" one of the seven approved forms of photo ID may fill out a Reasonable Impediment Declaration (RID) (PDF) at the polls and present an alternative form of ID, such as a utility bill, bank statement, government check or a voter registration certificate.

Who can vote by mail in Texas?

If you plan to vote by mail, you must meet certain criteria to qualify.

• You are 65 years or older on Election Day

• You are sick or disabled

• You will be out of your county during the early voting period and on Election Day

• You are expected to give birth within three weeks before or after Election Day

• You are confined in jail, but otherwise eligible

In 2022, thousands of applications to vote by mail were rejected for various reasons. The Harris County Elections Office said changes were later made to make the process easier and hopefully cut back on the number of rejected ballots.

While the county tried to simplify the process, the state made it more difficult, then-Director of Communications and Voter Outreach at Harris County Elections Leah Shah said in 2022.

“You’re now required to fill out a Texas ID number or the last four digits of your Social Security number. That was not previously a requirement," Shah explained.

Download and print the application for the mail ballot: English - Spanish - Vietnamese - Chinese

If you have other questions about the mail-in ballot process click here.

Tracking your mail ballot

Once you’ve sent your ballot by mail to your county’s early voting clerk, you can check the status of your mail-in ballot through the Ballot by Mail Tracker, available on the Texas Secretary of State’s My Voter Portal.

You must enter the following information:

• First Name

• Last Name

• Date of Birth

• The last 4 digits of your Social Security Number

• Your Driver’s License or Department of Public Safety Personal ID number

• Your residential address (must appear exactly as listed on your voter registration record. To look up the address listed on your voter registration record, use the ‘Am I Registered?’ tool)

• City

• ZIP code

How to correct a defect on your application for ballot by mail

If you received a notice (PDF) that your application for a mail ballot (ABBM) was rejected because you did not provide an identification number or the number included on your ABBM did not match one of the numbers associated with your voter registration record, you can correct the error online through the Texas Secretary of State's Ballot by Mail Tracker. When you log in to the Ballot by Mail Tracker, you will be prompted to enter your personal identification number(s). Once your personal identification number is validated, the ABBM you previously submitted will be processed.

To utilize the Ballot by Mail Tracker, you must enter:

• Your Texas Driver’s License Number or Texas Personal Identification Number, AND

• The last four digits of your social security number, AND

• Your residence address as listed in your voter registration record

If you received a notice that your ABBM was rejected for another reason, you may be able to correct the error by submitting a new ABBM (PDF) to your county's early voting clerk with the corrected information.

If you have specific questions about your registration or the status of your ABBM, you should contact your county.