With a constitutional amendment election approaching on Nov. 4 and the primaries following on March 3, it’s time for anybody who is not registered to vote to get prepared.
Texas law requires people to be registered 30 days before the election in which they want to cast a ballot – that means Oct. 6 for the fall election and Feb. 2 for the primaries a month later.
Prospective voters have options to get registered in person or by mail and must have a Texas driver’s license or personal ID number.
When it’s close to election time, Sandy Thornton, president of the League of Women Voters of Dallas, encourages people to register in person and make sure to follow through by casting a ballot.
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“Don’t lose your voice,” Thornton said.
Voting booths at the Dallas county elections training/warehouse facility in Dallas, Texas on Sept. 13, 2024.
Azul Sordo / Staff Photographer
First, find out if you’re already registered in Dallas County here and Collin County here.
New voters in Dallas County can download, print and mail their applications – or submit them in person. They are available in English, Spanish and Vietnamese. They should be mailed or turned in to the Dallas County Registrar of Voters: 1520 Round Table Drive, Dallas, TX, 75247.
Applications can also be picked up at libraries, tax offices and other government buildings. Find a full list here.
Collin County voters can fill out an online application in English here and Spanish here. It must be printed and submitted by mail or in person to the Registrar of Voters: 2010 Redbud Blvd., Suite 102, McKinney, TX, 75069.
If someone doesn’t have access to a printer, they pick up an application at the elections offices or can request a no-postage form be mailed to them. Just note the county in which you are seeking to register to vote.
Organizations like the League of Women Voters, NAACP and LULAC often host voter registration drives to help people get signed up.
People who are already registered voters but need to change their name or address can do so here.
Remember that to be eligible to vote, a person must be a U.S. citizen, a resident of the county where they intend to vote and at least 18 years old (or 17 years and 10 months to register). People with felony convictions are not eligible unless their sentence, probation and parole are complete. Those declared mentally incapacitated by a court of law are not eligible.
Thornton said showing up to vote is an essential exercise of American freedom and should not be wasted.
“It’s your voice in the community and that community is local, it’s statewide and it’s national,” Thornton said. “If we don’t use our voice, we lose it … if you don’t vote, someone else is speaking for you.”