Texas tops 19 million registered voters as early voting opens Monday

Texas has a record 19,041,684 registered voters heading into the Nov. 3 general election, the Texas Secretary of State's office announced Oct. 16.

The total is up 2.2% from the November 2024 election and 2% from the March 2026 primary, according to the release.

Key dates and rules

• Early voting: Oct. 19 through Oct. 30, at any early site in a voter's county of registration.
• Mail ballots: Applications must be received by Oct. 23. Mail voting is limited to voters 65 or older, voters with disabilities and certain voters who will be out of their county.
• Photo ID: Seven forms are accepted, including a Texas driver license, U.S. passport and military ID. Voters who cannot reasonably obtain one may sign a Reasonable Impediment Declaration with supporting documents.
• At the polls: Electioneering is barred within 100 feet of entrances, and recording devices are generally barred near voting stations.

Secretary of State Howden urged Texans to make a plan to vote and to check VoteTexas.gov, according to the release.

A competitive map

Texas joins Alaska and South Carolina in opening early voting Oct. 19, according to a Washington update from the firm Smith Garson. It said early in-person voting was already under way in 21 states.

The update listed Texas' open Senate race between Republican Ken Paxton and Democrat James Talarico as a toss-up, with Talarico ahead by 2.3 points in the RealClearPolitics average and Paxton up 1 in the latest poll. It also rated two Texas House seats, TX-15 and TX-34, as toss-ups; Texas is among the states that redrew their maps for 2026.